Face the Facts
by ARoseAndrews
Summary: SEQUEL TO "FACE THE FIRE" When the unthinkable happens, Princess Emmalina Schreave has to piece her life back together. She decides to go off to Amberly Schreave University to study the laws of Illea. What happens when see gets there? Will she find what she is looking for? (Dual Part: Emma and Alex) Rated T for language.
1. Chapter 1 - Emma

**EMMA**

You never know how real a dream is until you wake up and see that everything is different. Until you realize that you aren't the reincarnation of Superman; until you realize that you are not floating on a cloud throughout a candy-filled world; until you realize that you didn't win the school talent show.

Until you realize that you didn't fall in love with the love of your life.

August 22. The day I woke up.

…

 **August 25** **th**

There are backpacks and suitcases spread out all across the floor in my room. I am frantically pacing through them all, making sure that I am not forgetting anything. I look up at Naomi standing in the corner of the room.

"Do you think that I have everything?" I ask in a frenzy, throwing my hands in the air.

She chuckles and moves to close the nearest suitcase, "Princess, I believe that you have more than everything."

I shake my head and smirk, I know that I have a tendency to over pack but this is a huge decision in my life. I am going to college in a few days and my head is spinning with all sorts of emotions: the happiness of a new start, the terror of a new start, gratefulness of the opportunity, sadness for leaving home, but most importantly I feel like I have butterflies in my stomach because this is my opportunity to find him.

I smile when I think about his blue eyes, the only thing that could make me feel like my knees no longer work. His smile was the brightest smile I have ever seen, lighting up my life in ten-thousand different ways. His arms so warm and loving, how they always held me up when I felt like I couldn't stand on my own any longer.

Shaking my head, trying to get the thought of him out of my head, I stare intently at one of my suitcases. It's filled to the brim with different pillows and blankets but, you know, only the ones that I absolutely cannot live without: The orange and yellow blanket that I got for my ninth birthday from Aunt Marlee and Uncle Carter; the periwinkle and white pillow that I stole off of my parents' bed when I was seven and couldn't sleep that dreadful Thursday night; and most importantly, the teddy bear that Uncle Aspen and Aunt Lucy gave my parents the day I was born.

When I finally step out of my reminiscent trance, I look up and see Naomi zipping up the last of the suitcases.

"Thank you so much, Naomi," I say sincerely, "I have no idea what I'll do without you."

"Oh, Emma, I think that you'll be just fine," She says with a smile.

I look at her with a smirk, "You called me, Emma."

She blushes a deep red, "I'm so sorry, Princess. I – I didn't mean to…"

I laugh as I bend down to close a suitcase at the base of my feet, "Naomi, you don't have to apologize, I've wanted you to call me by my name since I was like fourteen."

She smiles, "Well then, thank you… Emma…"

I stand up and walk over and hug her, she stiffens and then lightly places her arms around my back. When I pull away she chuckles and I shake my head.

"Thank you Naomi, you are an amazing friend." I say honestly.

She nods and then returns to finish tending to the suitcases.

Ever since I woke up from the dream I have been having a hard time deciphering what is real and what is part of the dream. So far the only thing that I know was fake was not knowing about Uncle Aspen. He has been in my life since I was a baby and he, Aunt Lucy, Christopher, Lyella, and Lynnette live in the palace. The only thing that I have suspicion about is Christopher. In my dream he was gay, but in real life I have never talked to him about it, but ever since I woke up it's been on my mind constantly.

I turn to walk out of my room and I wave to Naomi but she doesn't see me. I close the door and turn into the hallway, when I look down the right wing, I feel a pain in my heart. Not a physical pain but one of emotion and hurt. When I look down that right wing, I remember August 22nd, the morning when my heart broke into a million pieces and my life did the same. The morning I ran into my parents' room in tears because the love of my life was gone, but in reality, he was never here.

I turn away before I start crying again, and I remember that I get to see him in a few days.

Walking down the hallway I can see that maids dusting different busts and paintings, the guards standing in a position that is as straight as a board, and different advisors walking through the hall to get to my father's office for the 2 o'clock budget meeting.

"Hello, Princess Emmalina." Lyle, Uncle Aspen's co-head of security at the palace, says as we pass.

I smile warmly and say, "Hi Lyle, nice to see you today."

He nods as he makes his way down the hallway to Conference room A.

I turn around and continue walking to Christopher's room: down the stairs and then make a right, after that you walk around twenty feet and make a left into the suites. I pass by several vacant rooms being cleaned and straightened up. I keep walking until I reach the Leger's wing.

Christopher's room is the third door down in the hallway on the left. There's music playing, I'm pretty sure that it's Kimberly Spear's new album, "Whiteout". I chuckle to myself and wonder why I never I thought that he was gay in the first place. Walking closer and closer to the door, I stop in front of it and knock expectantly. I look up and down the door as the music is being turned off and footsteps walk closer and closer to the door.

Christopher swings the door open and says, "Mom I told you – Oh… Hi Emma."

I laugh, "Hey Christopher, what's up?"

He shrugs and motions for me to come into the room, I walk in and sit on his bed and watch him pace around his room.

Originally, these rooms on the second floor were reserved for participants of The Selection but when I was born, there wasn't any room in the palace for our family and friends – except in the old selection rooms. So mom and dad to turn the vacant suites into rooms so that the people closest to us could stay whenever they please.

Christopher's room matches his personality perfectly. The walls are painted a cream color but they are almost wallpapered with different paintings and drawings that he has done. He loves using bright colors and pastels: making his room look like the inside of a _Smarties_ package. In one corner there is an old CD player and next to it is a tower-like structure that is around two feet tall and filled to the brim with old CD's from every era: Elvis, Journey, Beethoven, Taylor Swift, Jensen Ackles, Jazmyne Walker, Penny Danielson, Demi Lovato, Frankie Ives, and Christopher's favorite artist Kimberly Spears.

His bed is made of dark wood but the bed sheet is a quilt of many colors. He loves to create his own furniture/artwork, so when he upgraded to this suite when he turned thirteen he wanted to make his comforter for his new bed. His parents said yes and almost instantaneously he ran to the tailoring room and started to make the quilt. I'm sure that he didn't leave the tailoring room until it was done, only to eat an occasional meal that Aunt Lucy brought to him. He stayed in there for three days only sleeping when his eyes couldn't stay open any longer. When he emerged from the room he was still wearing the same yellow t-shirt and dark wash blue jeans that he walked in with. All he did when he finished the quilt was walk up the stairs to his room and collapse on his bed with his new comforter for seventeen hours of cold, almost dead like, sleep.

Christopher is still pacing around his room when I snap back into reality, he is admiring a painting in his hand and his head is tilted to the right, examining the brush strokes that he used.

"Do you think that there need to be more yellow here?" He points to a corner where there is an overload of pink and baby blue.

I shrug, "Maybe just a little bit, but I like it so far."

He nods and continues to examine it intensely. I look around the room again, trying to dilute the awkward silence but at last it becomes too overbearing.

"Hey, Christopher." I say, my eyes trailing him around the room. He is so intent in his picture that he doesn't hear me so I have to repeat it, "Christopher!"

He snaps his head at me and says, "You were saying something?"

I laugh, "You know, most people would be honored to have the princess of Illea in their room trying to talk to them."

He laughs, "But most people haven't lived with the princess for the majority of their mortal life and they don't know how awfully boring her speech is."

I chuckle, "Ungrateful peasant."

He mimics being hurt by gasping and placing his hand over his heart, "My dear Highness, whatever could I have done to deserve your wrath."

We both burst out laughing and I fall backwards onto his bed. I am going to miss Christopher so much when I go to college. He is my best friend and he is basically like my brother. Before Andrew was born I had no other person to play with that was my age or living in the same country as me. When mom and dad asked Uncle Aspen and Aunt Lucy to live at the palace, I was ecstatic to hear that they had a child that was only a year older than me. Christopher and I become the best of friends and he, Andrew, and I would always get up to no good. Now that Andrew is in Italy studying the medicine and plant species in the Italian mountains, Christopher is my only brother in Illea.

Christopher sits on his desk chair on the right side of the room, closes his eyes and tries to catch his breath and I sit up in the bed and look at him.

"I need to ask you something but you have to be completely honest with me." I say cautiously.

He opens his eyes and I see the green in them sparkle, Christopher did get his eyes from his dad, he says, "Alright, I promise."

I take a deep breath because what I am about to ask isn't something that you just ask like a normal question. Usually with these situations, the person tell you, you never ask the person directly.

I look at Christopher and I say, "So you know about my dream?"

He nods, "Emma, everyone in the palace knows about it, they know not to talk about it and not to mention it or you'll have like a mental breakdown."

I glare at him, trying to contain my watering eyes, "Shut up, I'm trying to tell you something."

He softens his gaze and says, "Yeah I know, I was just messing with you."

I try to force a smile when I say, "Have I ever told you about it?" He shakes his head and I continue, "Ok, well, in my dream I had no idea who you were. You showed up as a guard one day and we immediately hit it off. In the end, it turns out that you were only there to protect me because you knew that Uncle Aspen and Aunt Lucy were my godparents. I thought that you 'like-liked' me, but I didn't feel the same way because I met Alex." I put my hand in my lap after I finished with my air-quotes when I said 'like-liked'.

He nods and says, "Alright, so you thought that we had a thing but in reality we didn't?"

"Yes," I say nodding my head, "But there's more." I take a deep breath and say, "Right before I woke up I went to you apartment and we were talking about your life and stuff like that. So when we got to your personal life and like relationships you told me something that took me in shock…" I trail off, looking in my lap and thinking about that moment when Christopher cuts me off.

"Emma, stop beating around the bush, just tell me." He says sternly.

I look up at him and say, "You told me that you were gay."

The room goes silent and Christopher looks down. I just let him have his time because I have a feeling that what I just told him is something that he has been hiding or feeling. I feel the minutes float by and I just sit patiently waiting until he wants to talk.

Five minutes.

Seven minutes.

Ten minutes.

Finally Christopher speaks, "Emma."

I look up at him and I say, "Christopher."

He smirks at my jesting and he says, "It's true, I'm gay."

I nod and say, "You haven't told anyone have you?"

He shakes his head and says, "You're the first to know."

"Well, thank you for trusting me with your secret." I say earnestly.

He smiles and says, "You're the best person to trust." He looks at his watch and says, "Hey what time was your conference call with the dean of ASU?"

"12:30, why?" I say.

He nods at his watch and says, "You have five minutes."

I stand up, in a panic, "Crap! I totally forgot."

Christopher laughs and says, "Bye, Emma. I'd wish you good luck but I know that you don't need it."

I smile and hug him tight, "Thanks Christopher, for everything."

He squeezes my back and says, "What are brothers for?"

I pull away from the hug and I say one last goodbye and then I run out of the room on my way to the conference call with the dean of Amberly Schreave University.

…

Walking into the phone Conference room I am extremely nervous. I know that I have no reason to because I'm a princess and everything but I don't like to talk about myself, I always feel like I'm stumbling over my words and my throat gets really dry.

My dad is sitting in the chair fiddling with the monitor that I will be talking into in less than three minutes.

"How are you feeling, Em?" He asks distractedly, focusing on trying to make the monitor screen come to life. I can see Uncle Carter behind him trying to help but Dad keeps brushing him off.

I hide my shaking hands behind my back, "Oh, I'm doing fine, just excited to talk to the dean."

Still focusing on the monitor, Dad replies absentmindedly, "Well good, Em. That sounds nice."

I look at him confused but I shrug my shoulders, knowing that he probably didn't hear me.

"Ugh," Dad groans, "Carter, can you do it?"

Uncle Carter looks over at me and raises his eyebrows, he tries to surpass a laugh when he says, "Of course, Maxon."

Dad stands up offers me the seat, "I can't believe that you're going to college."

I sigh as I walk over to sit down in the vacant chair, "Dad, we don't even know if I'm going yet."

Uncle Carter laughs out loud, "Emma, I don't think that they can deny _you_." He says.

I roll my eyes, "I want them to treat me like a normal student. They don't have to accept any normal person, so that's how I want to be treated."

Dad nods, "That's a fine way to put it my dear."

The door to the conference room swing open and mom walks in, "Oh, Maxon, don't call your daughter by that vulgar name."

Dad laughs, "America, it's only vulgar to you. I don't think that Emma minds."

I shrug my shoulder and get ready to reply when I hear the sound of an incoming call on the monitor. Dad quickly moves out of the frame and under the table I grip the edge of my shirt so hard I'm sure that my knuckles are turning white. Uncle Carter clicks on the answer button and then an elderly aged man with white-gray hair and round glasses pops up.

"Princess Emmalina," He says, "What a treat. I am Dr. Horace Greenwood, the Dean of Amberly Schreave University."

I smile and say, "The pleasure is all mine Dr. Greenwood."

He clears his throat and says, "I have just a few questions to ask you and then I will review your application one last time, does that sound alright?" I nod my head and he begins, "Ok so why are you interested in joining the prestigious family of ASU?"

I take a deep breath, "Well, Dr. Greenwood, since I am in line to be queen of our fine country, I learn about the law constantly but I would like to have a new setting of enlightenment. I have heard that the law program at Amberly Schreave University is renowned throughout the entire country – "

"Entire world, Princess." He interrupts. From behind the monitor by Dad rolls his eyes and whispers to my mother, most likely about how rude it is to interrupt the princess.

I collect myself and reply, "Yes… the entire world, excuse me. As I was saying, I have heard about the _world_ renowned law program at ASU so I decided that I had to apply so that I could receive the best law education possible."

Dr. Greenwood types some things on his computer and scribbles on a notebook. I look up from the monitor and I can see that my mom giving me an extremely cheesy smile and giving me two thumbs up. I chuckle a little bit to myself and I playfully roll my eyes at her.

"Eh- hem," Dr. Greenwood clears his throat, "So, Princess, let's say that you are accepted into ASU, where would you like to stay?"

I look over to my parents and they nod, we have talked about this time after time and we finally came to a decision last night around two o'clock in the morning.

I clear my throat, "Hypothetically, if I was accepted into ASU, I would love to stay in the apartment complex nearby the campus. That way I am able to have some sort of privacy and the ability to fully live on my own for a little while."

He nods and scribbles something on his clipboard again. Behind him a door opens and a woman with dark skin and dark eyes walks into the room. She closes the door as Dr. Greenwood continues to scribble on the clipboard. She leans down and whispers something into his ear. When she begins to talk he stops writing and his eyes grow wide. He nods and then dismisses her.

"Ok Emma," He says nonchalantly. "I will have the answer from the board considering your admission into ASU in three days at the latest." He stands up and I can see that he is considerably short, he leans closer into the camera. "Thank you for your time." Then the screen goes dark.

I look over at my parents with wide eyes and they shrug, I slowly close the top of my monitor and I stand up.

Mom comes over to hug me and she says, "Honey, you did great. I know that they're going to accept you."

I smile and hug her back, "Thanks, Mom, I sure hope so."

She lets go of me and makes her way back to Dad. He takes her hand as I start to walk out of the phone conference room. I open the door and walk into the hallway, determined to finish packing.

…

 _August 22_ _nd_

 _Dear Alex,_

 _I woke up this morning and I was in love with you. It was as simple as it sounds, I fell asleep last night and I had no idea who you were, but this morning you were the only thing on my mind. To be honest, I don't remember a time before you; it's like you've always been here, you've always been with me. I woke up this morning in love with you._

 _Being in love with you isn't like falling in love, when one falls, they ultimately hit the ground. When one is completely enthralled in something so much that it becomes a part of their being, it can't be taken away. I have not fallen in love with you because there is no rock bottom, there is no ground that I can land on._

 _Being in love with you has become the structure of who I am. My bones ache for you and my head won't stop reminding me that you're out there. Being in love with you is like the need to breathe: I don't get tired of breathing, I don't need to think about each breath – it just happens. I don't need to think about you or your love because it's always there – in the back of my mind, wanting to be felt._

 _I can't forget the whisper of your kiss on my lips, the sound of your voice in my head, and the feeling I got when I looked in your eyes – all of it is still here. When I woke up and you weren't there, my heart was crushed, all the feelings that I once embraced were gone like the seconds that absentmindedly pass. If I had known that we only had that much time together, I would have cherished it more, I would have treated you better._

 _You know the saying, "You never know what you have until it's gone."? Well that's how I feel. When I had you I took you for granted. I didn't appreciate your loving embrace and I didn't wish for one more kiss. I didn't look into your eyes and I didn't listen to you as much as I should have. You were the best thing that has ever happened to me and now I feel like the poor man who places last in the Olympics. He thought that he had everything because he was at the prestigious competition and all he wanted was to take advantage of the outcome, but then he ended up losing. Now all the things that people thought about him are thrown away like an old hot dog wrapper._

 _I'm on my way. I know it sounds crazy because I've only dreamt of you but I know that you're the only one for me. It's not a question of who you are – I already know – it's a question of how much you mean to me and you mean more to me than anything in the world. I told my mom today that I didn't want "somebody", I only wanted you. You're across the country, but distance is but a number. I can't wait to be in your arms, looking into your blue eyes, kissing your rose colored lips that look like they jumped off the page of a fairy tale._

 _I can't wait to be with you._

 _I'm coming Alex._

 _I just hope that you'll wait._

 _Forever your missing piece,_

 _Emmalina Daniellina._


	2. Chapter 2

August 27th

…

Walking into the campus of ASU is so familiar. The hallways, the buildings, the students… Everything. This place has been my home for the last two years and can finally say that I'm moving on up in the world.

"Alex!" Someone shouts behind me, when I turn to look I can see that it's my best friend Pierson. He is walking towards me and he has that goofy smile that never seems to leave his face.

I laugh at him, "Hey man, what's up?" We hug and he shrugs.

"Nothing much, just wandering around and looking out over the immense sea of freshmen newbies." He laughs, "They're all so nervous, it's hilarious."

I chuckle because he's right, there are people standing next to suitcases that are twice their size waving goodbye to their parents. Some are walking around with their faces buried in their schedules. Others are trying to assimilate themselves into conversations that they don't belong in. It a sad but funny sight for a college junior.

When I was young, my parents were able to put me on an accelerated learning track so that I was able to finish school early. Usually, this was used for people in the lower castes because the heads of households needed to have their kids start working earlier. When the caste system was abolished, my parents decided to enroll me into the program so that I could have a quicker education. Thus, I got to go to my freshman year of college when I was sixteen. Now, at eighteen, I am on track to be the Summa Cum Laude of my class next year while being the youngest student in the school of Pre-Medicine.

You could say that life is pretty damn good.

Pierson snaps points over to an unfortunate freshman wearing plaid and overalls trying to flirt with a girl way out of his league. We both start cracking up. When our laughs settle, we start to walk out of the commons area.

"Hey, where are you staying this year, Alex?" Pierson asks. Usually I stay on campus in a dorm but this year I have decided on a change of scenery.

I smile, "I'm moving over to Rhoades apartment complex, right outside of campus. What about you?" I add the last part as an afterthought.

He nods, "Oooh, Rhoades is nice, but this year I'm in Hillside."

I roll my eyes and laugh, "Please don't tell me that you're moving there because of –"

"Miss Penelope Harvarde." He says, "Yes sir."

I laugh, "Dude, she's a senior, there is no way that you can even talk to her."

He shakes his head, "What you seem to forget, Alex, is that I am a whole two years older than you. We may be in the same class but we are not the same age."

I shake my head, "We may not be the same age, but we both know who has the better intellect."

"Shut up," He says. "You know that I could be in line for Magna Cum Laude if I tried, but I didn't want to."

I shake my head and punch his arm, "You just keep telling yourself that, Pier."

He laughs, "Alright, man, I gotta go. I have a kickass new apartment to finish moving into."

I smile, "Have fun, hope Penelope doesn't have you evicted for stalking on your first night." I call as he walks away.

He yells over his shoulder, "Shut Up, Alex!"

…

Just as I'm arriving to Rhoades, my phone starts buzzing in my pocket. I try to retrieve it before I miss the call, but it's really hard when your whole life is basically in your pockets. Shuffling around different candies, dollar bills, Chap Stick tubes, and keys, I finally pull out my phone.

Like I said before, I'm only eighteen, which means that I have been on the same phone plan since I moved out of my parents' home. I've had the same iPhone 60 that my parents gave me on my fifteenth birthday.

You know what they say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Even though my phone isn't the "turn of the century" technology, it still works. Yeah, the screen may be cracked and the batter life sucks, but it's mine, and I'd rather have a shitty phone than no phone.

When I check the caller ID, I see that I missed a call from my mom. She probably wanted to check up on me to make sure that I moved all my measly belongings from my dorm room to my apartment.

I swipe the screen, type in my passcode – 3138, and I navigate through the interface until I click on my mom's number and the phone starts ringing.

On the second ring she picks up, "Alex?"

I laugh, "Hey Mom, were you expecting me to call or something?" I tease at her instant response.

She sighs, "I was just making sure that you got your keys to the apartment, moved your furniture, and ate something. Last Christmas when I saw you, you looked really thin."

"Mom, I'm fine. I'm a college student, we have to live on a pretty tight budget." I reassure. "And yes, all the furniture is _in_ the apartment, whether or not I have actually unpacked is another story."

I can hear her exhale in relief, "That's good, you still have another week until school starts. Do you need your father and me to come and help you unpack?"

I shake my head, "No I'm fine Mom. Thanks for the offer but I know that you guys need to work. I'm fine up here."

"Ok honey, I have to go. The kids are coming back from lunch so my break is over." She says hurriedly.

I laugh, "Alright mom, enjoy the after lunch nap-time."

She laughs as the receiver goes dead.

I smile when I put my phone back into my pocket. I love my mom, she is the nicest and most self-less person that I know. At James Potter Elementary, she is the only Kindergarten teacher. She has a class of thirty-seven students and she handles them like a champ. I have never seen a bad review about her teaching and all of her students love her.

I turn right on Ryilee Lane and walk toward Rhoades. I want to get all my things unpacked and settled before my new roommates move in. Walker Powers and Zach Bailee are my roommates this year. I have only talked to them a couple times but they seem like pretty cool guys. Walker is into skateboarding and graffiti, apparently he is an art major at ASU and he is pretty famous in Kent because of his artwork. Zach is at ASU on a sports scholarship, basketball. He is a sports science major (big shocker) and he is the starting point guard for the ASU royals.

Royals. That's the mascot at Amberly Schreave University. Go figure.

I open the door to Rhoades and I wave to Kimberly the Desk Girl as I walk toward the stairs. The stairs are cement and they have absolutely no life whatsoever. Since Rhoades installed an elevator over the summer, no one uses the stairs anymore. I think that they're good exercise, since I barely have any free time to spend at the gym.

I hit the third floor and suddenly I'm hit with regret. Why did I choose to have my apartment on the sixth floor?  
"Ugh," I mumble to myself, "Way to plan, Alex."

After an eternity of climbing stairs and seeing the blank walls of the stair well inside Rhoades, I arrive at the door that opens into the sixth floor. I push the flimsy wooden door open and I walk into the hallway of the top floor.

I look around and I can see that no one else has moved in yet, I sigh to myself, and I keep walking.

6-13

6-15

6-17

6-19

6-21

6-23

6-25

Ahh, 6-27, Home.

I dig into my pockets once again and I fish out my key. The silver is a bit tarnish because I've been using it so much, walking in and out of the apartment as I moved all my things.

The key fits into the lock perfectly, I turn it to the right and I hear the 'click' of the mechanisms in the door. I turn the knob and walk into my new home.

The apartment isn't huge, but it's mine. To the right of the door there is a kitchen with a small table in the center for eating. There's a fridge, counters, cabinets, a sink, and a small coffee pot (courtesy of me). In front of the door, a little ways away is the living room. There's a small couch and a love seat (I always hated the word 'love seat' like it just gives you the heebee-jeebies.). A small wooden coffee table with a fairly large television is located right in front of the large set of windows. To the left side of the apartment, there are two doors that lead into Zach and Walker's room. My room is located after the kitchen. Like if you walk almost into the living room but stop before you hit the couch and turn to the right, you find my door. Zach and Walker told me that since I would be there to unpack first, I could choose the room I wanted. So naturally, I chose the room with its own bathroom. Ha. Ha. Ha.

Right now, there are boxes spread out all over the floor and the kitchen. My parents gave me this hand-me-down silverware set for my birthday last week. Even though the utensils were used, it was still the most-thoughtful gift the I received. Inside all the other boxes are textbooks, school supplies and other things that I need to live: My years' worth of Chicken Ramen Noodles.

I kick the box that blocks my way from entering the living room. I turn to the heaviest box that I own. I tear open the duct tape and open the flaps to reveal my old record player. Picking it up carefully, I set it down on the coffee table next to the television. I push the empty box away and open the one to the right of it. Up to the brim it is filled with different records from the 20th century.

People can call me a nerd all they want, but they can't deny that I have good taste in music.

I pull out the record on the top of the stack and I smile: Boston.

Boston is my favorite band, ever. Sometimes I wish that I could have grown up in the 20th century so that I could have seen them in concert.

I slide the record into the player and I turn it on carefully. I take the pick and place it on the edge of the record and almost instantly "More Than a Feeling" starts blaring from the speaker.

I stand up and I brush the dust off of my jeans. I whistle to the words…

'I looked out this morning and the sun was gone

Turned on some music to start my day

I lost myself in a familiar song

I closed my eyes and I slipped away'

Walking to the kitchen, I close my eyes and I try to feel the music. Before I realize that walking around in a sea of boxes with one's eyes closed isn't a good idea, I fall face first onto the floor.

I peel my eyes open and I start cracking up. I turn around so that I'm lying on my back and I close my eyes, safely this time, and I enjoy the music.

'When I'm tired and thinking cold

I hide in my music, forget the day

And dream of a girl I used to know

I closed my eyes and she slipped away

She slipped away'

An unfamiliar pain stabs my heart. I open my eyes and sit up, wondering why I felt like that.

I shake off that feeling, and I stand up. I straighten out my green t-shirt and I walk to the kitchen. There are boxes on top of the counters that are full of paper plates and napkins. One thing I learned from college is that you can never have too many paper products.

I continue whistling to the music; "Peace of Mind" is playing now. I start opening boxes and filling up the cabinets will all my ramen noodles and paper plates. I put the hand soap that Haylee, my sister, gave me by the sink and I stack the empty boxes on top of each other by the door.

I walk into my room and I jump onto my bed. When I first got here, about a week ago, the first room that I set up was my bedroom. My reason? Obviously, I needed to sleep somewhere.

The room has plain white walls like all of the rooms in this apartment. My double bed is pushed up against the walls on the far side of the room so that it is nudged in the far right hand corner. My desk acts as my nightstand and my place of study. At the foot of the bed I put my bookshelf: filled with books for school, recreational reading, and other classics that I've picked up from random bookstores throughout my college years… Well… My _two_ college years.

On my "nightstand" I have a book that I'm currently reading. "My life as Princess" by Princess Sabeena I-Can't-Pronounce-her-last-name from New India.

I'm on chapter twenty-seven, when she talks about her first trip to Illea. Right now she is about to be greeted by King Maxon, Queen America, Princess Emmalina, and Prince Andrew. I read the name Emmalina a few times, when a nostalgic feeling washes over me.

I remember dancing in front of the TV at home when I was little to the _Capital_ _Report_ theme song, waiting for her to show up on the screen. She always captivated me, her brown eyes like the chocolate river in "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory". My dad would always tease me about my enormous crush on the Princess of our country, but I would always laugh it off.

It's true, I had a major crush on her when I was younger but as I got older I grew out of it. I realized that wanting her is a waste of time because there is no way that I would ever get a shot with the Princess of Illea.

I kept reading Sabeena's book.

"We were greeted on the tar-mac by King Maxon, Queen America, Princess Emmalina, and Prince Andrew. Emma was holding a small poster board that said 'Welcome to Illea' on it. I didn't know it at the time but it became one of the most thoughtful gestures that I had and will ever receive when I arrive to a new country.

Usually when we arrive places, my parents are the first to come off the plane; but in this instance, I bounded down the steps before I heard my parents yell 'Sabeena wait!'

I ran right up to Emma and I said, 'Hi'

She said, "Hello.'

Then I said, 'Do you want to be best friends?'

And she said, 'Yes, I want to be best friends.'

That's how it all started."

I put my bookmark back inside on page 184. Setting the book down on my desk, I get out of bed. I open the bathroom door and maneuver inside. Twisting the knob in the shower, I hear the sound of the water start to run. I smile and pull of my t-shirt, throwing it down on the floor in a crumpled mess. I look at myself in the mirror and I make a fist. Lifting up my arm, I can see the bicep that I have worked so hard for – carrying my weights worth in books around campus for two years. I run my hand up and down my midsection. I used to play sports when I was in high school. I was captain of the soccer team by my senior year.

The only trophy I have left to show from my soccer days is my abs. I worked so hard over the summers between freshmen and sophomore year and sophomore and junior year in the weight room. After thousands of leg lifts, crunches, and other ab exercises that would take a year to explain, I got my abs. Now every day I do a series of workouts in order to keep them here, because it is my only reminder that I used to be a jock.

Now I'm just labeled as a Pre-Med student.

I take the buckle off of my jeans and I slide them down my legs and kick them off over into the corner next to my shirt. I pull off my boxers and I jump – well I walk – into the shower. The hot water runs down my arms and it hits my back. I look down and I realize that I'm still wearing my socks.

"Shit," I say as I peel them off the bottoms of my feet.

I throw them over the shower curtain and I hear them land on the floor with a _thud_ and a _squish_.

I look at the bottoms of my feet. I shudder as I remember being trapped in my grandfather's house as he dragged the –

"No," I say out loud. "Don't think about it."

I squeeze the shampoo out of the bottle and run it through my hair, I close my eyes and I try to hear the music coming from the living room.

Nothing.

I keep lathering in the shampoo until the froth builds up through my fingers and starts running down my arms. I shake off the excess foam from my hands and I turn so that my back is getting hit with the spray of water. I feel all the soap drip down my back as I stand in the shower, still straining to listen to the music, I look down at the drain and I see the white suds rush down into the pipe system below the floor.

In an attempt to smooth out the rest of the shampoo from my hair, I lift my hands and I push back all my blonde strands of hair. The drip from the soap rushes into an avalanche and the drain starts to clog a little bit as it tries to drain everything at once. I shake out my hands again and I grab the bar of soap.

As I wash myself with the soap I think about what I'm going to eat for dinner. I could go the cost-efficient route and eat chicken ramen noodles with a side of milk or I could just go order pizza.

For the past three nights I've been eating ramen, so I decide on pizza.

I wash off the excess soap from my person, turn off the water, and step out of the shower.

That's when I hear it.

The faintest knocking on the front door.

I quickly wrap one of my towels around my waist and I open the bathroom door. A gush of cold air makes the hair on my arm stand up. I quickly walk out of my bedroom and I pass through the maze of boxes through the living room so that I can turn off the record player. "Something About You" is playing, I hate to turn off my favorite band mid-song but I have to. I circle back through the boxes until I reach the front door. The knocking continues as I look through the peep hole of the door and I see Kimberly the Desk Girl standing in front of the door.

I open the door and she stands there in shock.

"Can I help you?" I ask slowly, trying not to scare her.

She comes back into reality, "Oh, yes… Um Mr. Lionel wanted to see you soon."

I nod, "Tell him I'll be right there, you know, after I get dressed."

She looks down at my towel for a second and then looks back up at me, "Alright, but make it quick."

I close the door and exhale.

"Way to go, Alex." I scold myself. "You couldn't have just thrown on a pair of sweatpants?"

I trudge back into my room and rummage through my drawer until I find a pair of boxers and jeans. I dry myself off and I put on my pants. I sift through my closet until I find a blue ASU hoodie.

I sigh to myself and slide it over my head.

Closing the closet door, I turn away and walk out of the room. When I'm halfway through the living room, I remember that I forgot to turn off the light in my room. Another lesson about college: The more the light is on, the more you have to pay.

After turning off the light, I walk out through the boxes and out of the apartment. Locking the door, I turn down the hallway. I bound down the stairs and walk into the lobby of the apartment building.

Kimberly the Desk Girl is sitting in her usual place – the desk. I wave to her and she points to the door at the far right end of the counter.

I walk around the desk and I knock on the door, "Mr. Lionel?" I call.

I can hear papers shuffling and coughing inside the office, "Come in." A raspy voice replies.

I slowly open the door in to the office and I say, "You wanted to see me?"

The office is small and stuffy. It smells vaguely of cigarettes and bad cologne. There are papers stacked on either side of the desk. There are bookshelves on the right and left walls of the office – really making the room seem much smaller. A small desk is located in the middle of the room and there are two chairs in front of it. There are windows behind the desk but it is covered by heavy curtains. The only light that they room has is from a dingy fan that slowly rotates around and around and around…

Mr. Lionel is a short, heavy set man. He doesn't have a lot of hair, but the ones that he still has left are dark brown and styled in a hideous comb-over. I almost laugh at the sight of him but I hold my chuckles to myself.

He nods, "Yes, you're Alexander Payne, am I correct?"

I smile, "In the flesh, sir." I add the last part on after the death glare that he gives me.

He coughs and then motions to a chair in front of the desk, "Yes, there was something that I needed to speak to you about."

I nod and say, "That's what Kimberly the Des—uh, that's what Kimberly was saying."

"Originally, when you first bought the apartment, was there anyone else on you floor?"

I look at him confused, "No, there was only going to be my roommates and me."

He nods and picks through some of the papers on his desk, "Well, that is going to change."

"Is that all you needed to tell me?"

"No." He says frankly. "What I need to tell you is much more important."

I look at him, "Ok, well I'm ready whenever you are."

He death glares me again, "There is going to be three more occupants on your floor."

"And… That has to do with me how?" I ask, the guy really needs to cut to the chase.

He coughs again, "The new occupants are going to be Lilly Danielson, Paisley Mitchell, and –"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Lionel, but I don't even know who those girls are. Why do they have anything to do with me?"

He gives me a death glare again and says, "… As I was _trying_ to say, the people moving in are Lilly Danielson, Paisley Mitchell, and… Emmalina Schreave."

I stare at him in shock, "Emma—you mean… _Princess_ Emmalina Schreave?"

He nods his head, "I just wanted to make sure that you were aware that the Princess of our fine nation would be moving into your floor."

"Alright," I say absentmindedly.

He death glares me again, "Now, Alexander, the reason that I am telling you this is so that you don't do anything stupid."

I chuckle, "Who me?" He death glares even harder, "Yes sir, I won't do anything stupid."

He nods, "Then that will be all."

I stand up and leave the room just as he lets out another cough. Kimberly the Desk Girl is sitting at the desk and she is typing on her computer.

I walk toward the stairs, thinking that I am probably just going to eat ramen tonight.

My voice is completely gone due to the shocking news I just heard, so I don't think I could call for pizza.


	3. Chapter 3

August 31st

…

The bags are packed, the plane is fueled, my hands are shaking, and my mom is crying on my dad's shoulder. Is this what goodbyes are supposed to be like?

I've never been away from home before, when you're the princess you really can't leave the palace all that often. Every time I went somewhere I had a swarm of guards around me, all of them armed in case someone wanted to injure me. The world's a scary place when you think about it.

I'm moving into Rhodes apartment complex in Carolina. Aunt Kenna and Uncle James said that it is the best complex for security. When I talked to the manager of the building, Mr. Lionel, he told me that I was going to be on the sixth floor. He said that the sixth floor was the best to live on because only one other apartment was occupied on it so I would have a good amount of privacy.

But I can't stop thinking about him. Alex. What is he doing at this moment? Where is his favorite spot to relax? How much time does he spend in the shower? No matter how many times I tell myself that when the time is right then it will be, I just can't wait to see his blue eyes staring back at me. I can't wait to see his smile light up a room.

I just can't wait to see him as a real person, not just someone whom I conjured up in my head.

The wheels on the plane start to move, breaking me out of my trance. I look out the window and I can still see my mom crying. I smile and wave to them even though I'm one hundred percent sure that they cannot see me.

As the aircraft picks up speed, I sink into my chair and I stare at the wall.

"Here we go," I whisper to myself.

Closing my eyes, I try to make my mind shut down for a minute so I can sleep.

My thoughts slow…

My breathing evens…

I sink deeper into the chair…

…

 _I'm running through the forest on the far end of the palace. It's the middle of winter and snow is everywhere. The trees have lost their leaves and the countryside looks like a picture perfect snow globe._

" _Catch me if you can," I yell behind my shoulder._

 _I continue running, through the trees and up the hills, I can hear his footsteps getting closer and I can feel the burning in my chest from running so fast._

" _Emmalina Daniellina," He calls, "Where are you baby?"_

 _I smile to myself as I drop to the ground and begin to form a snow ball. I grab handfuls of snow and I start to compact them into a sphere._

" _Emma, you're wearing a bright green snow jacket. You can't hide for long." He calls again. Footsteps getting closer and closer with every word._

 _I finish the snowball and I press my back against a nearby tree. I take long deep breaths, hoping he doesn't hear the sound of my heart beating in my chest._

Crunch _._

Crunch _._

 _I smile, waiting for him to walk around the corner. This is a game we play every winter when the snow is blanketed around the palace. We run out to the hills and we just spend the day in the snow. He chases me and I throw snowballs at him._

 _It's the perfect way to spend a winter day._

 _Usually after our hands have chilled and our toes are numb, we return to the palace and drink warm cocoa by the fire and watch my favorite movie:_ The Sound of Music _._

Crunch _._

Crunch _._

 _I start to time him arrival so I can hit him with the perfect snowball that is close to melting in my hands._

 _Three, two, one._

 _His dark blue jacket emerges from around the corner, he has his white snow pants on and his white gloves, and his blonde hair is muffled from under his blue beanie._

 _He doesn't notice me when he first walks by the tree, so I take careful aim and I get ready to hit him. I throw the snowball and it hits him in the middle of his back. I break out laughing as he slowly turns around._

 _When he faces me I smile at him and he returns the gesture. He walks over to me and sits down next to me on the tree._

" _So I guess I won?" I say spiritedly._

 _He shrugs his shoulders, "Maybe, maybe not." When I go to question what he means I am caught off guard by a mound of snow in my face. Suddenly my already frozen nose goes numb and the splash of cold runs down the front of my jacket._

 _He cracks up laughing and I playfully punch him in the arm._

" _Alex!" I exclaim. "Ugh, fine whatever. You win."_

 _He smiles and his blue eyes glisten. I always love how the dark blue snow jacket brings out the brightest blue in his eyes._

 _He kisses me on the cheek, "We can say that you won."_

 _I lean into his shoulder, "No it's fine. I won when I married you."_

 _He kisses the top of my head, "I love you Emma."_

 _I smile, "I love you more Alex."_

…

I wake up to the flight attendant shaking my arm, "Princess, we are going to be landing soon."

I rub my eyes and I smile, "Thank you, Jennie."

I open the window and I look out over the landscape. Coincidentally we are flying over the campus of Amberly Schreave University. I look over the campus that my life is going to be centered around for the next four years.

The plane starts to land and I take a deep breath. I see the lines of paparazzi on the grounds and I roll my eyes. They never leave me alone and they are always making wrong assumptions about me.

I can already see the headlines now.

PRINCESS EMMALINA AT COLLEGE AS PUNISHMENT

PRINCESS EMMALINA DETHRONED BY FATHER

All the paparazzi want to see me in trouble or causing mischief, but I try to keep my nose as clean as possible.

The plane lands on the ground and I stand up and I thank the flight attendants.

"Are you ready, Emma?" Fred the pilot asks. Fred is a longtime family friend. He started his career as an assistant pilot when my dad was really young. On every flight that my dad and Papa Clarkson took, he was always one of the requested pilots. When the royal pilot, Walt, retired, Papa Clarkson asked Fred to take the job. Ever since Fred has been the pilot for the palace, any flight that we take he is flying the plane. Fred and his wife Molly have become basically family members to us. Since Papa Clarkson and Mimi Amberly died in a rebel attack and Grandpa Shalom had a fatal heart attack, Fred and Molly have become adopted grandparents to me.

I smile, "Oh of course, the paparazzi are always around. I'm kind of used to it."

He chuckles and shakes his head, "No I mean, are you ready for college? It's a big step."

"Oh," I reply. "I'm not sure. This is a big step and I think I'm ready, but I know that I'll be fine and in the end it will be a good decision."

He nods, "Well, am going to be moving back to Carolina in a few weeks for retirement. I will have your father pass along my address. If you need anything Molly and I are just a short drive away."

I give Fred a hug and say, "My parents didn't put you up to this, right?"

He laughs and says, "Oh no, your parents do not know about my retirement yet. When I return I have a meeting with you father, that's when I'll tell him."

I pull away from the hug and say, "Well, thank you Fred, for everything. I don't know what I would do without you."

He smiles, "We love you like our own, Emma."

"I love you too. Give Molly my best." I reply.

He nods and heads back into the cockpit to lower the door.

I hear the door start to open before it actually does. The light breaks through the sides of the door, and the cameras start flashing.

"Princess! Princess!" I can hear the paparazzi call. I take a deep breath as the door continues to open. The calling gets louder and my heart beats faster.

My eyes adjust to the change in light, as I look out over the sea of people waiting for my arrival I think of my mom. She was once in similar shoes as me: standing and looking out over a sea of people who are constantly chanting her name.

I smile when I think about my mom before her life as a princess and queen. Uncle Aspen used to tell me stories about how she would always bring him food because he didn't have much, how she would only wear a small amount of makeup for special occasions, how she would be the kindest person even though she only had a little bit to offer.

Stepping down the ladder, I wave to the crowds of people. There are little girls holding up signs that say, 'Long Live the Princess', 'Welcome Home Princess Emmalina', and other kind words. When I start to walk to my car I see a little girl with blonde hair who has on a pink dress and black Mary-Janes. I smile to myself and I walk over to her.

I kneel down and smile at her, she shies away and I say, "Hi sweetie, what's your name?"

She looks up at me, her eyes are a deep green and she is missing one of her front teeth, but she replies with, "Aubs."

I chuckle, "Aubs, is that your nickname?"

She nods her head and her mother leans down to say, "Her real name is Aubriella Pearl."

I smile at her mom and then I look back at the little girl, "That is a beautiful name, Aubriella."

She smiles and says, "Thank you Princess."

I chuckle, "Oh please, call me Emma." I open my arms and I give her a hug. Her frail figure is trembling, I pick her up and put her on my hip. I turn to her mom and I ask, "Can she walk down the carpet with me?"

Her mother, with tears in her eyes, nods. Aubriella smiles and leans into my shoulder. I walk down the carpet and I whisper in her ear, "Do you want me to hold you, or do you want to walk by yourself?"

She answers in the faintest voice, "I want to walk but you're really tall."

I laugh and I put her down, "Maybe I should just take off my high heels?"

Her smile grows wide and she starts to laugh, "Yes!" she exclaims excitedly.

I slip off my heel and I hold them in one hand, I take Aubriella's hand and we start to walk down the carpet.

People are chanting, "Princess Aubriella" as we walk down, and I smile harder than I have ever before. I lean down to her and I say, "The people love you, Aubriella. Wave to them."

She timidly lifts up her right hand and she waves to the crowd of chanting people. I smile at her and she looks up at me and smiles back. Her green eyes sparkle as she looks around at the crow of people who are chanting her name. She looks over to one of the sides and sees her mother and father walking through the crowd, her mother in tears and her father videotaping the whole thing. I chuckle to myself and I keep walking.

When we arrive at the car, I kneel down again and I ask, "So did you like walking down the carpet?"

She nods and throws her arms around my neck, "Thank you Emma. Thank you Thank you." Her missing tooth made it sound like 'Tank you'.

I smile and I hug her back, "You _are_ a princess Aubriella."

I stand up as her mom rushes to her daughter. They hug and I see Aubriella's dad. I walk over to him and I say, "Hi, you must be Aubriella's father."

He nods and says, "I have that immense pleasure, Princess."

I smile, "Oh Please call me Emma, I really hate the whole title of a Princess."

He holds out his hand, "I'm John." We shake hands and then a sort of silence comes between us. I see that john looks over at his wife and daughter lovingly.

He nods, "Thank you."

I look at him confused, "What do you mean?"

He pulls out his camera and he shows me a picture of Aubriella waving to the crowd of people, her green eyes glittering and her blonde hair blowing in the wind. I'm standing next to her holding her hand and smiling down on her.

He points to the picture, "Thank you for doing that for my daughter. It means the world to Sarah and me."

I look over at Aubriella and her mother and I say, "Being a princess isn't about having a title and becoming queen someday. Being a princess is about the moments where you can connect with people and make a difference. In my rule, if I make one person smile or have a better day, then I will be content with what I accomplish. I don't want to be queen because of the fact that I have supreme control over a country. I want to be queen because I want to make a difference."

"I have one hundred percent faith in you Emmalina," John says earnestly, "If you truly want to make a difference and you do everything in your power to do so, then there is no one who can stop you."

I smile at him and I shake his hand again, "Thank you John for letting me borrow you daughter for a quick walk down the carpet."

He chuckles, "No problem at all, Emmalina. I think that this is a moment that we will forever cherish in our lives."

I look back at the little girl and her mother, "Do you think that you could send that picture to the palace? I would love to have it in my room."

John smiles, "It would be my honor."

We say our goodbyes and I give Aubriella one last hug. The family walks away as I step into the black car that will carry me into my new life.

My new start.

…

Rhoades Apartment complex is definitely not the palace. It is smaller and a bit stuffy, but it's a place to call my own. When I first walked through the doors I was greeted my Mr. Lionel, he is a small man with next to no hair, but he seems nice. He greeted me and told me all the attributes that Rhoades has to offer: The close proximity to the school; Maximum privacy for my comfort; and an in house main service welcome to all apartment owners.

…But that wasn't the best part about walking into the apartment complex for the first time.

I didn't think that it would be possible, for fate to be this perfect but there he was. He was standing, casually leaning against the wall next to the check-in counter. I never thought that he was a real person. Whenever I woke up I thought that he was a dream, a myth, something that my mind made up because I thought that I could have a perfect reality.

But he was there.

He was wearing a dark green hoodie, his blonde hair was disheveled all over the place, and he was wearing a pair of light wash jeans. He was just leaning there against the wall next to the counter, talking to the girl with the red hair behind the desk. It was so simple, but yet, so beautiful.

It fulfilled all my wildest dreams.

"Princess," Mr. Lionel says, shaking me out of my trance. I realize that, yes, I am still walk into the apartment building and, yes, I am still learning about my new surroundings.

I smile at him, "Sorry Mr. Lionel," I say. "I was just grasping the magnitude of the building."

He nods his head and smirks at my "interest" in his complex.

"Right this way, Princess." He says matter-of-factly.

We start to walk through the lobby and make out way to the elevator. The lobby isn't big but it serves it purpose. On the far right hand side there is the desk and a door behind the countertop, which I guess is Mr. Lionel's office. On the back wall there is a large window and a desk with all sorts of pamphlets and magazines. Next to the desk are the elevators and the door that leads to the stairs. On the left hand side of the lobby there is a large 'L' shaped couch with a coffee table in the middle of the 'L'.

We keep walking through the lobby and Mr. Lionel pushes the elevation button. When the doors slide open, we are meet by a girl will dark brown hair that slowly fades into a light shade of blue. She has on a BOSTON 1975 shirt with ripped jeans – Suddenly I feel very overdressed in my red day-dress and heels. She smiles at Mr. Lionel and then she noticed me and her smile gets bigger.

"Hey, you must be Emma." She says as she walks closer.

I smile, "Yes, and you are?"

She pushes a stray brown and blue hair behind her ear when she says, "I'm Luna Turner, your roommate."

I look at her and say, "Wow, I've never had a roommate before."

Mr. Lionel interjects, "Princess, we can give you're your own suite if you would prefer…"

I shake my head and smile, "No I think it's going to be fun!"

Luna laughs and says, "Is it okay if I give you a hug? I'm a hugger."

I laugh with her, "Sure."

We hug and she motions to the elevator, "Let's go get our apartment set up."

We keep laughing as the elevator closes and the guard head back to the plane to fly home.

…

"So why did you dye your hair blue?" I ask as Luna and I unpack her room. We decided that it would be fun if we both helped each other unpack so that we could get to know each other.

She laughs, "I don't have any piercings or tattoos, so I told my mom that my way of being a rebellious teenager is by dying my hair all sorts of crazy colors." She shrugs as she plugs in a lamp. "I thought that the blue was good for summer, in a few weeks I'll go to a deep plum color for fall, I think."

I take out her comforter – a tie dye mix of purple, blue, silver, and red. She and I stretch the sheets across her bed and then smooth the comforter on.

As we are throwing the throw pillows on top of the bed she says, "You are so… like I don't know how to explain it… Real."

I chuckle, "Yeah, I've been real for like eighteen years now."

We both laugh and she says, "No, you're just so down-to-earth and genuine. When Mr. Lionel told me that I was going to be roommates with the princess I was pretty skeptical because I didn't want you to be all political and bitchy around me."

I shake my head, "Actually, the country is in such a wretched state. There are people running amuck in the cities and the water supply is way too high. Also there is this weird girl who has brown and blue hair that must be banished at one. Therefore, you should keep my father in office."

She laughs, "Shut up."

I smile, "I always get that reaction from me and every time it makes me chuckle to myself. Yes, I know that I've grown up in a palace but that doesn't give me the right to be stuck up or crappy to people. Even though I'm a princess, I don't wear a crown every day; I don't bath in bath salts and rose petals; I don't get exempt from seven hour budget meetings; and I don't get to be treated any less than you. The only difference between me and the rest of Illea is the gates around the palace. Otherwise, I am just like you guys."

Luna just stares at me, "You know what?"

"What?"

She smiles, "I am so glad that you're going to be queen someday."

I laugh, "Well thank you."

A knock on the door breaks out conversation. We both walk out of Luna's room, She looks through the peep-hole, smiles, and then opens the door.

"Hey," She says.

A girl with caramel colored hair is standing at the door with boxes stacked all around her.

"Hi," she says, "I'm Marissa Olken."

I smile and say, "Hey Marissa, welcome to the best apartment in the world."

She giggles and steps into the room.

Luna and I start grabbing the boxes from the hall and put them into her room. In this suite everyone has their own bathroom, which I was pleasantly surprised to see.

"Are you Princess Emmalina?" Marissa asks.

I'm about to answer when Luna interjects, "Yes, but call her Emma, she doesn't like the title of princess," When Marissa looks apprehensive she continues, "Trust me, I've only known Emma for a few hours but I can promise you she is awesome and so down-to-earth."

I blush at the compliment and then I say, "How about we start on Marissa's room?"

The girls agree and we all walk into her room and start putting the boxes on the floor and rearranging the furniture.

When I walk out the front door into the hall to grab the last box, I stand up and I am met with a pair of very familiar blue eyes.

"Hi Al—um, Hi." I say.

He smile and he says, "Hi Princess – "

"Oh please don't call be Princess, just call me Emma." He looks at me causiously and I say, "I promise that you won't be turned in for treason."

He laughs and his smile is still as bright and wonderful as ever, "Alright, Emma. Is there anything that I can help you guys with?"

I smile and shake my head, "I think we're good, but we'll give you a call if we need you, um… What's your name?" I add the last part on just for dramatic effect.

"Alex," He says, "Alex Payne."

I grin at him, "Thank you again, Alex."

I walk back into the apartment and close the door. I smile to myself because he is just the way that I remember him.

Blonde hair.

Striking blue eyes.

Thousand watt smile.

I shake out my trance and walk into Marissa's room to continue our efforts to unpack.

….

 _Dear Alex,_

 _Today was my first day moving into my new apartment; my new roommates, Luna Turner and Marissa Olken, are super sweet and they treat me like a normal person! It reminds me of how you treated me when I first saw you in my dream, you treated me like an actual human being and not a monarch. I don't know, it feels weird the think of myself as something bigger than a normal person, but I guess that ill have to get used to it right?  
It's been over a week since I woke up. _

_Do I miss you?_

 _Is the day long?_

 _Of course I miss you, I miss you with every fiber of my being. I have a picture of you hidden in my favorite book so that no one will think I'm crazy. You'll probably think that I'm insane. (By the way, I got the picture off the computer from Uncle Aspen)._

 _I most likely won't give you the letters but writing them makes me feel like you're reading them as I write them. Like that words that my blue-inked ball point pen are being directly sent to you. I moved into my new apartment today – but of course you know that because I saw you. My room is smaller than at the palace, but somehow it feels like home. It feels comfortable and a place to call my own. Today, Luna, Marissa, and I started to set up our rooms. My bed sheets are mint green chevron on a light grey background. Luna's are tie-dyed purple, blue, silver, and red; Marissa's are bright pink and dotted with purple peonies dotted throughout. You know that I'm not a big fan of the color pink. I prefer blues and greens probably because they remind me of the hills behind the palace and the lake that mom and dad took Andrew and I to when we were little._

 _Ok, I'm rambling now. I guess it's time to go, I'll add this letter to the others in my shoebox that will soon be hidden in the bottom corner of my closet. Encasing the secret notes to you in a leather boot smelling sarcophagus. I love you Alex._

 _Forever your missing piece,_

 _Emmalina Daniellina._


	4. Chapter 4 - Alex

September 4th

…

When I look into her eyes, I'm lost. They look like the sea and the sky and all sorts of watercolors that dance around after a rainstorm. Her smile is gorgeous, illuminating every corner and twist and turn of my heart, and her voice is like listening to my favorite song.

When I see her I still get those butterflies, I know I'm a guy and that's weird, but I can't help it. She makes me feel brand new.

Her name is Reagan Moore and she is everything good in my world.

She walks with a purpose towards me and her face breaks out into a smile. Her blonde hair blowing in the wind like a cover on a magazine.

"Hey babe," She says as she kisses my cheek.

I smile into her hair when I wrap her in a hug, "Hi sweetheart, how's your day going?"

"Much better now that I get to see you."

"How was Roman Architecture through the Centuries?" I ask, wondering how her first class of her freshman year is going.

She sighs and backs away from the hug, "I love Roman Architecture, I really do, but I absolutely can't stand Professor Lake."

"Oh, I bet he isn't that bad." I reassure as I push a stray blonde hair behind her ear.

She laughs, "Ha. Ha. Ha. Today in class we were talking about the first arch created and Professor Lake went on and on about this particular type of stone that the Romans used. The entire class he sounded like he was talking to the stone arch. It was _entirely_ too boring."

Reagan has been my girlfriend for the past year and a half. We met one summer while I was at my parent's house for the month. She would come over to help walk the family dog when my parents were at work. One day came over and saw that I was there and she started to leave because she thought that she wasn't needed, but I told her that it was alright and she could stay. We spent the whole afternoon walking my dog Ralphie and talking about ourselves and what we want to do with our lives.

Her dream is to design houses for people all over Illea. One day she hopes to restore some of the houses that were destroyed in Honduragua during the massive earthquake that happened ten years ago. The nonprofit would be called "Helping Homes for Honduagua" and she would go in and fix up houses that were destroyed.

Since then we have been together and it has been the best year and a half of my life. I was going to school at ASU and she was finishing her high-school education only an hour away. We would see each other some weekends, and we would video chat and text all the time. Now that she is enrolled in the Architecture program at ASU, we can see each other a lot and I love it.

I love her.

She takes my hand and says, "Do you want to grab lunch?"

I smile at her and I say, "I would love to."

We walk to our favorite café on campus: Rosie's Café. The food there is the best: from homemade mac and cheese to chocolate pound cake, it tastes like a home cooked meal – something that you miss when you go to college.

As we start down the side walk, bordering the country road, her hand finds mine. Our finger tips intertwine and I squeeze her soft palm. I look over at her and I smile to myself because I'll never know I I ever got so lucky.

"How was your first day of class?" Reagan asks.

I think back to my first day as a junior in college, "It was ok, bio-med is always tricky but in the end I figure it out. Today we were looking at cancer cells in a microscope."

She shudders, "I don't know how you can do that, I would have a major anxiety attack."

Reagan is a hypochondriac, she always thinks that she has some sort of disease that is ultimately fatal. When we first started dating, I would tell her about some of my research projects that had to do with different skin diseases. She would call me constantly because she 'swore' that she contracted one of the fatal diseases and she was going to die.

"Oh it's not that bad," I reassure, "You get used to it when you're around it enough."

She laughs and shakes her head, "I'm glad one of us can handle the medical field."

Our hands swing between us as we walk down the pathway towards the café, the birds chip, the leaves rustle, and the sky is the perfect shade of blue.

Rosie's café isn't the biggest restaurant in town, it is a little two-story cottage on the outskirts of the campus hidden within the woods. Pierson and I stumbled across it one night after we had way too much to drink at a campus party. Liela Rose, the owner, took us in and helped a couple of drunk college kids. After that night, Liela became my second grandmother.

I open the door for Reagan and we walk into the small café, it smells of cinnamon rolls and coffee. We walk to one of the seven tables in the main dining room and wait for either Liela or Frank to come and help us.

"This place is so cute," Reagan says, "It smells so good too." She takes a deep breath through her nose and closes her eyes as she exhales the sweet smell.

I chuckle, "I love it here, it feels like home. Frank and Liela Rose are two of the nicest people on the planet."

"How did you find it? It's in the middle of nowhere."

I open my mouth to answer but before I can get a word in, Liela steps behind me and says, "Alexander and one of his friends, Pierson, were walking around one night past midnight drunk as can be. Pierson threw up right in my front yard, actually. Frank and I remembered what it was like to be in college and to go to a party, so we fed the boys and let them sleep on the couch upstairs. When they woke up we gave them a nice hearty breakfast to sooth their nasty hangovers and off to class they went." She says matter-of-factly. "I'm Liela Rose by the way."

My face burns a deep red color as Reagan laughs to herself, "Are you telling me, Alex. That you and Pierson got so drunk one night, you started walking in the woods and then you threw up on this lady's front porch?"

I shrug, "It wasn't my finest hour."

She breaks out laughing and I start to chuckle along with her. When she smiles a warmth spreads over me. A sort of protective feeling that I have. If anything were to happen to her, I don't think that I could forgive myself.

Her lighthearted attitude is something that I cherish, she always is happy and she loves life. She can look at the sky for hours in wonder and awe; she lays on the grass and can watch the ants bring little pieces of food back to wherever their home is; she can go on forever about how sophisticated an arch is, or how this particular cathedral is a perfect example of gothic architecture.

She loves the little things in life and she cherishes every moment.

Liela breaks me out of my Reagan-induced trance, "So what are you two kids going to eat today?" She pulls out her notepad and says, "Alexander, I know that you want a stack of homemade flapjacks and a cup of mac and cheese."

Reagan laughs, "Do you have any French toast?"

Liela nods her head, "Best French toast in the woods."

We all start laughing because there is nothing else in the woods to compare the French toast too.

Reagan looks over at Liela and says, "I'll have the French toast please."

"So you want powdered sugar on top?" Liela asks.

Reagan nods and Liela walks away to go grab some coffee.

"This place is so nice, and Liela is so sweet." Reagan says in awe.

I smile, "She is like my second grandmother…" I motion to the stairs right by the door to the kitchen, "Those stairs lead up to the second floor: Where She and Frank live."

We talk about our days and what classes we have next. She tells me that her roommate Audrey invited her to a party on Friday and that she's on the fence about going. I told her that my new roommates Jaxon and Lucas moved into the apartment a few days ago.

"So how are they?" She asks, "I know that you're a bit bummed because Pierson didn't want to room with you but I bet Jaxon and Lucas are nice."

I nod, "Yeah they're cool guys. Jaxon is hilarious, he always seems to be cracking jokes about everything. Lucas is super musical, the guy's room is filled with instruments: a keyboard, guitar, ukulele, saxophone, and an electric drum kit."

"Wow, they seem like really talented guys," She says.

I chuckle, "They're both freshmen as well, so it's pretty cool to room with people my own age for once."

She nods, "What are they majoring in?

"Jaxon is an English Major, which I was very surprised about when he first told me. Lucas is obviously a music and recording major. He is working on an album now… I think it's called 'Misled'. Apparently he had this dream and in it he wrote a song called Misled. When he woke up he jotted down the words that he remembered and fell in love with the song. I read some of the lyrics and it seems like a really cool tune. I can't wait for him to release the album." I say.

She shakes her head, "Some people are just so creative, it's insane."

Frank brings out the food. I wait for Reagan to bite into her French toast before I dig into my pancakes because I want to watch her reaction. When she takes a bite powdered sugar explodes around the corners of her mouth. She closes her eyes and lets out a small "mhmm" to signify that she like it.

I smile as I cut into my first bite of pancakes.

…

As I walk to the door on my apartment, I fish around in my pockets for my keys. When I don't find them in my right pockets, I dig into the left pocket. When I don't find them in my left pocket I look in my right pocket. Finally, I give up and I press my back against the wall and slide down to my butt. I just stare at the apartment across the hall – The princess's apartment… did she tell me to call her by her real name? Oh, yeah, she did. – So I look at Emma's apartment and I just listen to the humming sound of the air conditioning and I slowly feel myself drift to sleep…

…

A whisper of a voice wakes me up, "Alex… Alex…" I feel a soft hand on my shoulder and the owner of the hand squeezes my shoulder and says, "Alex… Hey, wake up…"

When I open my eyes I have to blink a few times before I believe what they see. When my vision clears, I am met with a pair of brown eyes and long blonde hair.

"Emma?" I say warily, still groggy from sleep.

She chuckles to herself, "Why are you sleeping in the hallway?"

I look around and I realize that I did in fact forget my apartment key, "Oh… I, uh, forgot to take my house key to my first pre-med class this morning."

She starts laughing harder, "Wow and you're a junior?" When I nod she continues, "Classic Freshman Mistake."

I stand up and I look around defeated, "Ugh, I'll have to wait until Jaxon gets back before I can open the door."

Her face gets paler and she stumbles on her words when she says, "Wait… You have a roommate named Jaxon?"

I look at her confused, "Yeah, why?"

She shakes her head, "No reason… Um, what's his last name?"

"Prescott," I say cautiously. When her eyes widen I ask, "Do you know him or something?"

She smiles, "Not really, I've just heard his name around."

We stand in an awkward silence for what seems like an eternity. Her eyes drifting around to each corner of the hallway. I've noticed that she rocks back and forth on her feet when she is nervous or scared. I was walking by one of her classes this morning and she was giving a presentation. When I looked through the window on the door, she was rocking from her heels to her toes because she was nervous. I also remember her on The Report, she was talking about how she decided to not have a selection. If you looked closely you could see the smallest movement of rocking when she was speaking.

Right now she isn't, she seems completely normal in this awkward silence. I look around the hallway, trying to see what she sees in the drab stingy sixth floor.

She breaks the silence when she says, "Since you're locked out, do you want to have lunch with me in my apartment? I'm making chicken fingers and ramen noodles…"

I chuckle, "Yeah, totally. I mean, it's not every day you get to eat with the princess." A look of pain flashes across her eyes for less than a second, she smiles and nods while digging her apartment key out of her pocket.

Emma's apartment is amazing. She, Luna, and Marissa have all sort of different pictures and lights and colors. It looks like the apartment jumped off the page of a decorating catalog.

"Your place is awesome," I say looking at a chalkboard with different chores and shopping lists written on it in all sorts of different colors.

She opens the fridge in the kitchen, "Thanks, we wanted to make it really girly if you couldn't tell." She chuckles as she grabs a bag of chicken tenders from the fridge.

I look closer at the chalkboard, "What's 'Buy Feminine Products'?" I ask.

When I turn back to her she is trying to suppress a laugh, "Do you really not know what feminine products are?" I shake my head and she laughs, "Do you have any sisters?"

I nod my head, "Two, Kendall and Haylee." Another flash of pain in her brown eyes. "Are you okay?" I ask.

She looks at me confused, "Why wouldn't I be?"

I shrug my shoulders, "It's just like, whenever I say somethings you get this look on your face like you're in pain or something."

She sighs, sliding the chicken fingers into the oven and then walking across the kitchen to sit on the counter, "Trust me, I'm fine."

I look at her cautiously, "No, Emma. Tell me."

She stares at me and I can see her brown eyes watering, "It's… It's just, uh… It's hard to explain."

I walk toward her and I lean against the counter next to her, "Hey, I'm locked out of my apartment. I've got plenty of time."

She chuckles, "Fine." She wipes her eyes, "Well, I just knew this person… He was perfect. His eyes were the prettiest things that I have ever seen in my life, his smile lit up the darkest rooms, and his laugh was contagious. He and I had a 'thing', I guess you could call it that, but he treated me like his prized possession. It was basically like he was conjured up in my mind and he walked out of my dream."

I look at her, "He sounds really nice."

She looks at me and her eyes are watering again, "Yeah… It was nice… But one day, he just left. He walked out of my life as fast as air leaves a balloon. It killed me. I was so broken and sad and defeated because here, I thought that I had found my forever and then the next day it's gone." She wipes her eyes, "Sometime you mirror his expressions and you remind me of him."

I look at the floor, "Emma… I'm—"

"No." She says, "No, don't apologize. It has nothing to do with you, which is why I didn't want to tell you. Alex, you seem like an amazing person and I want to get to know you. Not the person who broke my heart."

"What was his name?" I ask.

She pauses for a second, "Alec… Alec Michael Peters."

The timer beeps and she stand up to grab the chicken from the oven. She opens the drawer to the right of the oven and slides on a pair of pale blue and yellow oven mitts. She sets the chicken on top of the oven.

She returns the oven mitts back to the drawer. Something about the way she does everything is so elegant. She moves with a purpose and with drive.

She walks back over toward me and she says, "I think we need to wait a few minutes, they're still pretty hot."

I wrap my arms around her and give her a hug. She tenses up for a few seconds and then finally relaxes into the hug. The way her arms wrap around me when she hugs is familiar, it reminds me of something that I can't quite figure it out, but I know that it's familiar.

When we separate she looks at me with confused watery eyes, "What was that for?"

I smile at her, "I just thought that you needed a hug? Especially because you deserve so much more than that douche bag."

She chuckles, "Don't call him a douche bag…"

I get frustrated, "No Emma, he is a douchebag! You don't deserve that at all!"

"Alex, you literally met me like three days ago." Emma says, "Calm down like three notches."

I laugh and I say, "Sorry, I just hate it when guy treat girls like rag dolls."

She walks over to a cabinet and pulls out two plate, "Your favorite food is chicken tenders right?"

"Yeah," I say, "Wait… How did you know that?"

She looks back at me and her eyes sparkle, "Lucky guess."

…

"Yeah mom, she's amazing." I say into the receiver of the phone.

"Oh honey, I'm glad Reagan is liking the school. She was so unsure that she would like a big campus."

I smile remembering the argument that we had over which school Reagan should go too, "I knew that she would love it. She just needed convincing."

Mom laughs on the other end of the phone, "Well good, I'm happy to hear that."

The line goes silent for a while before I say, "So guess who I had lunch with today?"

"I don't know honey, who?"

"Princess Emmalina Schreave."

Again the line goes silent, "Mom," I say cautiously.

"I'm here honey." She says timidly.

I exhale and I say, "So yeah, I had lunch with Emma today."

"Emma?"

"That's what everyone calls her, she doesn't like the title."

"Ohh. So what did you too talk about?"

"Actually, a lot of different things. We talked about how my favorite food is chicken tenders and how hers is French toast or cheesecake. I found out that she is studying politics and law. Her best friends live across the world… Mom she is so cool, like we just sat on her couch with the TV volume low and talked. She likes her chicken fingers with ketchup and I like mine with honey mustard…" I trail off thinking about the conversations.

She chuckles on the other end, "That's nice sweetie. It sounds like you're making a new friend."

"Mom, I can't explain it. To be honest, it feels like I've known her forever, like we've been beat friends since we were little."

"Alex, you _did_ grow up watching her on television." She reminds me through the receiver.

I laugh remembering all the times that I watched her on TV and wished to know her, "Yeah, it's just so cool because she's real… Like she is so down to earth and nice and sweet."

"Good for you Alex, but remember you have a girlfriend."

My mind flashes to my girl with blonde hair and the prettiest smile on the earth, "Yeah I do. And she is the best, most wonderful girl I have ever known."


	5. Chapter 5- Emma

September 24th

…

It's three a.m.

I'm wide awake.

I'm delirious.

But I'm writing a song so nothing else matters.

My song book is opened to a fresh page, the anticipation of new lyrics and new meanings on a new canvas is the best feeling when you're songwriting. My black pen is suspended over the lines waiting for the right word combination to come to me.

"Alex…" I mumble, trying to grasp inspiration from my muse. As I continue thinking, a movie starts playing in my mind. I see Alex and I next to a stream, the sun just beginning to set. I see his dark blue tank top that makes his eyes pop out like a neon sign in the moonlight.

 _I was skipping rocks out by the creek_

 _When a really cute guy walked up to me_

I smile at the thought of Alex and his blonde hair, the blonde hair and blue eyes that I fell in love with.

 _I said "What is someone like you doing here"_

 _He said "I thought it'd be a good time to disappear_

 _For a while and forget about the time."_

In my mind the moon performs throughout the sky and the stars become back up dancers. I see Alex walk over to the edge of the stream and he starts singing.

 _I listened when he sang, I watched while he danced_

 _I laughed when he talked about hopeless romance_

 _And when I looked in his eyes I thought_

 _'Man I'd love to have you for the rest of my life'_

I lean back in my bed and I close my eyes, wanting to be covered in the magic that is this dream. Suddenly my head floats away and I'm standing on the river bank with Alex.

…

A person walks up to me with his skin gleaming next to the water. He smiles and those stupid butterflies flare in my stomach like a fire with gasoline.

I call out to him, "What are you doing here?"

He walks closer, "Is it against the rules to be out here? I just thought that it would be a nice time to leave reality for a bit. Forget about deadlines and time limits."

I nod and watch his every move. The way his back curves into each step. How his calves flex whenever he picks up a foot. How his left arm just barely twitches as a light wind blows through the river bank.

He starts to hum a song. The melody so familiar and the tune so sweet.

"Wise men say, only fools rush in, " He sings to himself as he skips rocks on the still water. "But I can't help falling in love with you."

I smile at the lyrics as he turns toward me. He opens his arms up wide and sings to me, "Shall I stay? Would I be a sin?"

I laugh when he walks up, the rocks crunching beneath each step, and takes my hand, "If I can't help falling in love with you?"

I giggle when I reply, "How can you be in love with me, I just met you?"

His eyes glisten as he leans down and whispers in my ear, "I don't know, but sometimes when life shows you something so blatantly obvious, you shouldn't ask questions."

He backs away from my ear and moves my hands up around his neck. We sway from one foot to another, hearing the crunch of rocks and pebbles beneath our flip flops.

He keeps singing, "Like a river flows. Surely to the sea. Darling so it goes, somethings are meant to be."

He twirls me under his arm and I start to sing, "So won't you, take my hand. Take my whole life too…"

"For I can't help falling in love with you." We both finish the song.

I smile into his presence and he returns the gesture. For a moment we stand there, breathing heavy from dancing and singing, The world stops time, the moon stops performing, the stars stop dancing, and finally I realize what he meant by step away from reality. When I'm with this person it makes sense, time doesn't matter and what's going on in my head doesn't either.

He lets go of my hand and he starts to walk away.

"Wait!" I call after him, hoping that he'll stay for one more moment.

He turns around and waits for me to speak, when I do I say, "I don't know your name."

He smiles and says, "When it's real it's meant to be, when you least expect it then you'll find me."

The river bank disappears and the person does too…

…

When I walk up I notice that the clock says, 5:52.

"Great," I mumble to myself, "I only slept for two hours."

I look back over to my song book and I think about my dream. The person that I saw wasn't Alex. He had green eyes and dirty blonde hair, not Alex's strikingly blonde locks. I started my song thinking about Alex but I ended up dreaming about someone else.

I reread the lyrics that I've written and as soon as I finish the first verse the chorus pops into my mind,

 _That's how it started, that's how it began_

 _Two lost and lonely people, broken-hearted and looking for a chance_

 _When the rain comes down and I can't see_

 _He'll be my windshield wipers, my headlights_

 _He'll take care of me._

I smile at the chorus and then I read the lyrics again. I hum the melody in my head and I start the next verse

 _We did a lot of cute things, like kissing the rain_

 _And we argued a lot, he drove me insane_

 _But by the end of the day we both agreed that it was okay._

I laugh at the thought of singing this to someone, the lyrics so real and true.

 _I always talked about living on the moon_

 _Next to the aliens and stars and the universe too_

 _But he shook his head as he leaned closer to me._

I think about a situation like this and I think about what I would want someone to say to me right then and there…

 _He said "I'd never wanna live among the stars_

 _Because compared to you, Honey, they're not bright at all_

 _So why would I want them when I have you for the rest of my life."_

Then I write the chorus again

 _That's how it started, that's how it began_

 _Two lost and lonely people, broken-hearted and looking for a chance_

 _When the rain comes down and I can't see_

 _He'll be my windshield wipers, my headlights_

 _He'll take care of me._

I remember all the times when I was younger, how I wished upon the stars for someone to love me. How I daydreamed about all the cute and fun conversations that we would have.

 _Now look at us we're so happy_

 _We always go back and reminisce by that creek_

 _To remember the hot summer day when we first met_

 _He took my hand as the sun began to set_

 _He got down on one knee, his eyes glistening_

The picture in my mind flashes to a pink, orange, and red sunset on the banks of the river. The eyes of the person in my dream flashing under the appearing stars.

 _He said, "This is where it started, this is where it began_

 _I knew from that moment that you were my forever friend_

 _So join me on this endless journey_

 _I can't promise you baby that it will be easy_

 _But please come along with me."_

I'm trying to figure out how to write the last part, how to tie the song up perfectly. I think of the ways that I could end it. Repeating a verse, ending on a cliff hanger, or just simply have it end where the chorus ends. I reread what I've written so far and I think I have an idea…

 _Now I listen when he sings_

 _I watch while he dances_

 _I still laugh when he talks about hopeless romantics_

 _When I look in his eyes I think man I'm lucky that you're mine_

 _For the rest of my life._

I title the song "Hopeless Romance" and I close my song book. Setting my black ball point pen down on my night stand I lay back in my bed. My room isn't as big as it is in the palace but it is the perfect size for what I need here. My bed is pushed against the back two walls, I like to lay in the corner of my bed so that my back is touching the walls… Is that weird? Oh well. By the foot of my bed I put my keyboard – something that I can't live without – Mom didn't want me to bring it to school, but I did anyways because it is my main source of musical outlet. Next to my keyboard is a tall bookshelf, filled with all sorts of books, Textbooks, magazines, photo albums, everything. Next to my musical instruments, my bookshelf is my most valuable possession, it has everything in it that I'll need. On the wall that the headboard of my bed is on, I placed my nightstand and my desk. On top of my desk is a family picture of a ski trip that we took when I was eleven, boxes of my study items: planner, notebooks, and writing utensils, etc. Then I have my closet and the door to the bathroom on the last free wall.

I turn to look at my alarm, 6:15, I decide that I should start getting ready for my 8 am humanities class. The lights are off in the apartment because Luna and Marissa don't have class until 10… I'm the only stupid one who took an 8am class. Tip toeing into the kitchen, I open up one of the cabinets to grab a pan from underneath.

Clang Clang

"Dang it!" I whisper, trying not to wake my sleeping house mates. The pan slowly slides out from under another and I try, very carefully, to stop the other pan from falling. Once the pan is out from its cabinet incarceration, I slide it into the oven.

Click Click

The oven starts to heat up, I walk over to the fridge in the corner of the kitchen and I search through all the food items until I find the thing that I am looking for: Pancake Mix.

Mom, Dad, Andrew, and I would always eat pancakes if we had a big day ahead of us. Usually the menu was Pancakes, Bacon, and fresh squeezed orange juice, but this is college and my roommates and I don't have an orange tree growing out of the back yard.

Taking the pancake batter out of the fridge, I dig through the silverware drawer to find a measuring cup. The bowl is placed on the counter and the pan has already been buttered. I start spooning in the pancake batter into the pan and I hear the sizzling as it hits the hot surface.

After what feels like an eternity, the pancakes are finally done and I take the batter and return it to the fridge. The pancakes are placed on a plate and I set it down on the small kitchen table. This is weird, but the only way that I can eat syrup is to mix it with some butter and heat it up until the butter melts; this process make it easier because you don't have to butter the pancakes!

I pour the butter-syrup concoction on the pancakes and I sit down to enjoy my breakfast. The light starts to stream through the window in the living room, I smile and think about my Humanities class that I have in 1 hour.

…..

"The purpose of western art and culture is vital to understanding the natural of how this country was built. Many of you students are on your courses to different majors and minors; all on separate paths to achieve a goal: creating and paving your future to your dreams." Professor Langley stops pacing across the front of the room and he turns to look at the class as a whole. "The crazy thing about this is that… All of you are here, in this room, learning about western culture. The importance of western culture is greater than any of you can imagine. That is why I am here. To enlighten you with the knowledge of how our society came to be… Maybe one day you will understand… Maybe one day you will come to appreciate the culture as much as I do."

The short, skinny, gray-haired man turn back to the board and begins to list off many ancient Greek philosophers. He is wearing a dark olive green suit jackets and khaki pants. The suit jacket really makes his gray hair stand out. His shoes are dark brown and his glasses match the shoes. Professor Langley is an interesting man.

I start to write down the names of the philosophers in my blue spiral notebook when a piece of paper lands on my desk. I look around until I see the person behind me smiling and nodding at the paper.

I open it and it says.

" _I find it quite hard to imagine anyone who can_

 _have the same zeal about western humanities_

 _than Professor Langley"_

I chuckle and write back.

" _I know right, he's an interesting little man._

 _What's your name?"_

I toss the note back to the guy behind me. Now I start to write down the philosophers: Aristotle, Plato, Socrates... The note hits my desk again.

" _Jarsen, but people usually call me_

 _Troy because it's my middle name…_

 _And it's less embarrassing."_

I smile at his little explanation and write back.

" _I like Jarsen, can I call you that?"_

Throwing the note back to Jarsen, I look up at professor Langley and I laugh. He is standing on his tip toes to show the class how the middle stone of an arch is so important because of the weight movement. The note files back onto my desk.

" _You can call me whatever you want,_

 _I really don't have a preference…"_

I write back.

" _So Jarsen it is."_

He writes back.

" _What are you doing after class?"_

I write.

" _I was probably going to walk around campus…_

 _It'd be nice to have a friend to join me…"_

He writes.

" _I wonder who you would choose?"_

I write.

" _I don't know… I have so many friends_

 _How will I ever be able to choose one?"_

He writes.

" _Maybe you should set some criteria_

 _Like the person you choose has to have_

 _Characteristics of _ and _."_

I write

" _Yeah that's a good idea. Ok I have some_

 _The person I choose must be tall, have dark_

 _Brown hair, and go by two names…"_

He writes.

" _Yes."_

I write.

" _Thank you for the quick answer_

 _Jarsen Troy._ _"_

…

"Your turn." I say, waiting for him to ask me a question. As we walk around the campus, we started to ask each other questions, basically playing 20 questions… Now it's his turn.

"If you could pick one person in the whole entire world, and they could be your only friend. Who would you choose?"

I think about this one for a second but I already know, "Probably Carolena. She's the princess of Brazilentina, she is one of my best friends and she is so sweet and amazing. She has the heart of a champion and she is so intelligent. She is pretty much the only person that I could be only be friends with."

He nods, "Alright, your turn."

I think about what I am going to say and then I ask, "If you could dye your hair other color besides dark brown, what color would you dye it?"

He laughs and says, "Obviously Red. My skin complexion would make me the best looking red-head ever."

I start laughing with him, "No no no! Red looks good on people like my mom, but I'm sorry Jarsen, you couldn't pull off red hair."

We keep laughing around campus. Of course people stare and wonder what we are talking about but we really don't care. It's Jarsen's turn to as a question.

"If I asked you to go on a date with me, what would you say?"

I look up at him and I think about it. I came to Amberly Schreave University so that I could find Alex, so that I could be with Alex. I look into Jarsen's hopeful eyes and I don't see anything wrong with going on a date with him. I know where my heart lies and I know what I came here to do.

But what is love without a little bump on the road?

I smile and say, "Of course." I grab his hand and we both walk around the campus together laughing and talking.

For once, since I have been at ASU, Alex is not on my mind.


	6. Chapter 6- Alex

Hello Hello Hello. How are you guys? Long time no see! Here is the WAY overdue Chapter 6! In this chapter something big happens... Guy I am deeply sorry about these sparse chapters. I have so many things going on, and I know that that is no excuse but its just bad reasoning... All I know is that I hope to be uploading a lot more because I have a lot of fun ideas for this story and I hope that you guys will stick around for the ride :)

* * *

Alex

October 9th

…

Everyone has their group of friends, you know, the people that they always hang out with. Well, I have my own group of friends just like everyone else. Tyler, Lucas, Sam, Pierson, Ray, Jarsen, and Zander.

Tyler is the jokester. He has about a million April fools pranks up his sleeve and you never know when you'll be the next victim of his pranks. He is somewhat tall but extremely lanky, his face kind of reminds me of Peter the Great from Russia. (The Czar that brought Russia out of the dark ages and into westernization? Yeah, that's him.) He has short brown hair and he takes like fifteen minutes to make sure that it is perfect every. Single. Day.

Lucas is the musician of the group, in fact, his name just sounds like the name of a famous singer. 'Hey are you going to that Lucas Carpenter concert?' His music is like that grunge kind of depressing kind. He's the happiest guy that you'll ever meet but his music is just so damn sad. Lucas is about average height and his black hair is pretty long. When I first met him, he had these glasses that made him look like a stock market mogul from the 20th century. A couple years ago, he decided that the glasses weren't adding anything good to his 'image' so he opted for some contacts and BOOM, about a hundred more girls were all over him and his guitar named Francesca.

Sam is the mysterious one of the group. Mysterious but sensitive. He has an older brother named Dean that stops by every so often to check up on him. Sam is a pre-Law kid and let me tell you, he is a genius. He scored a 174 on the Law exam and that is almost unheard of. Sam's a tall and muscular dude, he has long brown hair and he doesn't style it but for some reason it always looks like the perfect combination of the 'I-just-crawled-out-of-bed' look and the 'don't-touch-my-hair-it-took-me-three-hours' look. Whenever I ask him where he and Dean run off to, he just says that he goes on hunting trips. Sam doesn't own a lick of camo and he never comes back with meat. Also, his brother drives a 1967 Chevy impala, not some sort of truck that is usually used for hunting. But it's whatever, Sam's a cool dude and he has his head on straight.

Pierson is obviously on of my best friends, he is the guy that took me under his wing my freshman year and I can't thank him enough for that. He is crazy and wild but underneath his party-animal skin, he is a really nice guy. Since he is older than me, he can get me into all the crazy frat-parties and clubs that we like. Pierson is basically the older brother who teaches you how to do all the bad stuff around three years before you're legal to do them… If my mom knew that she would shoot me, but anyways, Pierson is a business major and he has absolutely no idea what he wants to do with his life. All he knows is that he wants to make money… How? Well, don't ask him because he doesn't know.

Ray is just like his name sounds; he is a genuinely nice guy (We call him a 'Ray' of sunshine). I don't think I have ever seen a person that is more smiley than he is. The guys and I wondered if he was gay when we first met him, but once we saw his girlfriend, Naomi, we decided that maybe we should be as nice as Ray because maybe we could find someone as awesome as Naomi… (Reagan is better in my opinion, but Naomi is so sweet). Ray came here last year, so he is one year older than I am, but he and I are really close. Naomi and Reagan are friends so we always find ourselves paying on our double dates. Ray is a technology major and someday he wants to work at the palace to be in charge of security. Maybe I should introduce him to Emma… Anyways, Ray is hands down the nicest guy you'll ever meet.

Troy: the collegiate athlete, the 4.0 grade point average-er, the 'my-hair-is-always-perfect-even-though-I never-touch-it'. Troy is a 6'4" man. I say man because he isn't an adolescent, he isn't a boy, he is a man. Troy has a chiseled jaw line and his dark brown hair and he always has girls swooning over him. A couple days ago, I saw him in the cafeteria walking with Ray and a girl asked him to grab a ketchup packet from the top shelf of the condiments area. He smiled and gave her one, the usual Troy way, and when he turned around, she looked so light headed and she almost fainted. Troy is the type of guy that looks like a douche bag but when you get to know him, he is really chill and fun to be around. Our friend group wouldn't be the same without Troy… He is what makes our group look a thousand times more attractive. I saw him a few weeks ago walking around with Emma, he looked so happy, I hope that they work out because he deserves someone as nice as her.

….

The guys and I decided that every week we should have a night where we just play video games, drink beer, and turn off our phones. Usually it's every Wednesday night, unless we have an exam or something in the morning, but tonight, it's just game night.

We all take turns bringing in different foods, tonight I'm in charge of the pizza, Troy is getting chips and dips, Ray is grabbing the candy that we are going to gamble with, Sam's brother offered to buy the beer, Jaxon is bringing the games over, and Lucas has all the music.

The phone rings and a voice picks up.

"Eight Slice Pizzeria, My name is Cassie, how can I help you?"

I answer, "Hi, I'd like to order four large pizzas. Two meat-lovers and two cheese."

"What's the name for the order?"

"Alex Payne."

"The Address?"

"Uh—Rhodes Apartment Complex. Just leave it at the front door."

"Okay, your order will be ready in about forty-five minutes."

"Thanks."

The line goes dead and I text the boys that the pizzas are ordered.

I'm about to walk back into the living room when there's a knock on the door. Turning around, I can faintly hear crying trough the wooden entrance. I open the door.

"Emma?" I say surprised to see the crying princess at my door.

She looks up and her brown eyes are filled with tears and her face is red and blotchy.

I grab her hand and pull her into my apartment. She starts crying harder and harder, it breaks my heart to see her like this and in so much pain. I hug her tight and just let her cry into my shoulder. Her shoulder shake each time she lets out a sob and her breathing is staggered because she can never fully capture a solid breath. I don't try to talk to her, I just hold her until she is stable

She squeezes her arms around my waist and she just keeps sobbing into my chest. I want to ask her what is wrong so badly but I don't want her to have to relive anything.

I don't want her in pain.

She doesn't seem to want to move, so I pick her up and walk over to the couch. I sit her down and hug her again. She continues to sob and cry into my shoulder. My shirt is soaked with her tears, but at this point I don't care because she is letting it out.

Finally after what seemed like forever, the gut-wrenching sobs turn into whimpers and shakes.

"Emma?" I timidly ask, "Tell me. Tell me what happened."

She lifts her head off my shoulder and her eyes are red and puffy. Her lips are chapped and her hair is a mess. Her face is red and splotchy and she is trembling.

"It's – It's my b-best friend." She says, "She's in critical condition and she isn't looking good."

The tears start to drip down her face but she doesn't start crying. She is too weak to start sobbing.

"Who?" I ask, trying to get her to tell me more of the story.

She wipes her eyes, "I-Isabella, s-she's the princess of I-Italy."

I grab the tissue box off of the side table next to the couch and I hand it to her.

"Tell me more." I say to her, "Tell me about what she is like."

For a second, I swear I can see her smile.

"She's the funniest person you'll ever meet. She is caring and nice and she would do anything to make the world a better place." She blows her nose in the tissue, "I remember one time, when we were young, we would run around the palace and terrorize my brother. He hated it, but I think that he secretly love the attention."

We both chuckle, and her eyes brighten. Everything seems to be looking up.

"She's in the hospital because she was hit by a drunk driver." She stops smiling. "She was driving home from a gala and out of nowhere a car just hits her. She in a coma now and they're not sure that she will wake up." She starts to pick apart the tissue in her hands.

I sit there and wait for words to come to me, but no miracle epiphanies happen. Emmalina is a tall and strong woman, she walks into a room and everyone stops what they're doing because her presence is so powerful.

But looking at her right now, sitting on my couch, she looks so small. She looks so weak. She looks so hopeless.

"Emma, she will wake up." I say with as much sincerity as I can. "If she is a friend of yours then I know that she is a fighter. Fighters don't give up." The tears well up in her eyes.

"You're a fighter, Em." I whisper.

Her shoulders shake, "I'm a fighter," she whispers back.

A knock breaks the silence in the room.

I walk over to the door and I open it.

"Hey man!" Troy is there holding the pizzas and the chips and dips, "The receptionist had the pizzas, I thought that I'd save you a trip and just bring them up for you… Dude what's up with your shirt?"

I look down and I see all the wet spots from where Emma has been crying.

I look back up at Troy and say, "Hey man, you might want to see her." I watch his eyes drift from me to the couch behind me. His happy-go-lucky attitude is replaced with a protective stare. I grab the food from him and almost instantly he jogs over to Emma.

"Hey baby," I hear him say. She starts crying harder and I can hear him comforting her. A pain stings at my chest. I quickly dismiss it because I know that it's only because Emma is hurting.

I've always been an empathetic freak. I hate seeing people in pain or depressed , all I want to do is switch places with them and take on their burden. It's always been a problem because it physically makes me uncomfortable and it hurts to see others like that. I have no clue why I chose to go into the medical field because obviously I have a problem with people in pain.

I walk into the kitchen with the pizzas and something hurts. Something hurts because I hate to see Emma in this much pain. I hope Isabella recovers because I don't know what I would do if I lost someone who I was that close too.

…

Troy and I finally got Emma to calm down and she ended up joining in on game night. She absolutely destroyed us in Mario Kart. She was _that_ person who chose to play rainbow road. There's this taboo around Rainbow Road, especially when you're a guy… Like it doesn't look right if you choose to play it. On the other hand, Rainbow Road is like the best track on the game. I think that all the guys were relieved when Emma wanted to play it.

Who knew that the princess of Illea would be so cool to hang out with?

"Emma," Pierson asks, "Did you play Mario Kart at the palace?"

Her eyes don't leave the TV when she shakes her head, "Nah, Andrew and I weren't really allowed to play video games and stuff. Mom and Dad didn't want us to play online and have people realize our identities and then try to sabotage the palace via Minecraft or whatever."

She then proceeds to beat Tyler, Zander, and Sam by almost nine seconds. Their faces droop instantly as they realize that they just got their asses kicked by a princess. An actual princess.

But this princess isn't Princess Peach. She's badass. She's sarcastic and funny. She's not arrogant about her title, she hates it. She doesn't feel entitle to anything, she wants to work for it. She doesn't think that everyone will love her because of the family she was born in, she thinks that people like other people by the things they do and how they portray themselves. She is the most real person I have met, but she is also like a dream.

I throw my head back in laughter at their failed attempt to win and I say, "Guys, and Emma, pizzas in the kitchen if ya'll want any."


	7. Chapter 7

**Holy Cow... It's been a while. I'm not going to go into everything that has been going on because we would be here all day. Long story short, I was in a writing slump and I'm still trying to work my way out of it but I've been pushing through because I have big things planned but I want to get into more of the story before they happen... If you guys have any ideas of somethings that might be cool or something that you want to see, I can try and work them into the story if you would like. Anyways, I know I say this every time but I am really working to write quality chapters for you guys and have them be up in a timely manner! I posted chapter six a few days ago, I'm not sure if the notification was sent out but if you haven't read chapter six, I would read that before reading this... :) Ok without further ado, here is chapter 7!**

* * *

 **October 30th – Emma**

* * *

I've been waiting and waiting and waiting to hear my phone ring and tell me that she's either gone or she woke up. She's been in a coma for three weeks and I'm getting worried because I don't know what I would do without my best friend.

Jarsen has been over a lot to make sure that I'm ok. He always tries to get me out of the apartment and out of my slump, but I don't think I can. I'm grateful for his help because I have no idea what I would do without him. He is my rock, my shoulder to cry on, and he is always there.

 _Knock_ _knock_.

I get up from the couch, turn off the TV, and walk over to the door. As I'm walking, I pull my robe up from around my waist and I slide it over my arms and onto my shoulders. I tie the fleece band around my waist and drag my feet on the floor. Looking into the peep hole, I can see Jarsen standing there with a box of takeout food. I smile to myself and wipe away any tear or eye booger that may be on my face.

I open the door and I look into his green eyes and I smile.

"Hey," I say meekly.

He smiles down at me and kisses the top of my head. I lean into the gesture and savor the moment.

He moves away and says, "Hey baby. Can I come in?"

I nod and he walks in the door. His footsteps clear and determined. He sets the takeout boxes on the counter and turns around and leans against it. I close the door and drag my feet over to where he is. I lean against him and I snake my arms around his waist and nuzzle my head into his chest.

When I was growing up, I was always self-conscious of my height. I was afraid that people wouldn't take me seriously because I always looked like I was walking on stilts. My mom always said that the most powerful women in the world were tall and I had to embrace my height and learn to love it. Not only was I afraid of people thinking that I looked like a giraffe, I was afraid that I wouldn't find someone that loved me and was as tall or taller than me.

Throughout the many generations that the Schreave family has been on the throne, the kings have always been taller than the queens. I'm not sure if it's because of the selection process and the kings chose the smaller women to make them look taller; but no matter what, they always were the tallest in the portraits.

When my dad told me that I was going to been queen, that was my greatest fear: being the first woman to inherit the throne as well as having a king that is shorter than me. Thankfully, Jarsen is 6'4" so I think that I'm in the clear.

"Emma?" Jarsen asks, rubbing up and down my back with his hands.

When I try to pull my head up, it seems to want to resist. Jarsen smells like pine and his arms feel so strong around me; the possibility of letting him go is completely impossible.

To make sure he knows that I'm coherent, I mumble into his chest.

I can feel the intermittent rise and fall of his chest as he chuckles to himself, "When was the last time you ate?"

This time I tell myself to lift my head off his chest and my eyes start to water, "I don't remember," I whisper, almost too softly to hear.

The past three weeks have been hell. I have been sleeping more and more and eating less and less. My energy levels have gone down so much, I just don't have any motivation to put food into my body. All I do is wake up, shower, go to class, come home, sleep, go to my next class, come home, sleep… It's a vicious cycle.

I used to be an average sized female… I had places here and there that I would change, but I was never too overweight or too underweight. During the weeks that Isabella has been in a coma, it's like I've been in a coma too. My height is 6' and I was close to 200 pounds of muscle when I was healthy. Now I'm down to 140 pounds because I don't eat.

Jarsen looks me in the eyes and I can see the glistening in his. He wipes away one stray tear that fell down my cheek.

"I hate seeing you like this," He whispers. "I hate seeing you in so much pain, so weak. Emma it breaks my heart." His glistening eyes turn to welling up. "You know how much I care about you."

I nod and look at the ground, "I'm sorry…" My words trail off.

Jarsen places his forefinger under my chin and lifts my head up, "Don't be sorry," He continues to whisper, "I wouldn't be ok if I was in your situation. Emma, I just want you to be healthy and strong. That doesn't mean that you can't have emotion. Asking you to not love the people and the things around you would be like asking you to erase the things that make you, _you_. Baby, when I look in your eyes, I see a fire of passion and selflessness that takes my breath away. When I see you smile, the world stops and it's just you and me; no matter what is going on around us, it's only you and only me. I want you to love and I want you to live… But I just want you to be happy."

He pulls me into another hug and the silent tears stream down my face. I surrender into his strong and gentle embrace. I remember the day that I met him, I was so sure that he was going to be a bump in the road and I would eventually find Alex. The more time that Jarsen is mine, the more I forget about my dream. When I see Alex happy with Reagan, it makes me think that dreams are fun to have, but in reality there can be things that are so much better.

I still remember the night in my dream when I asked Alex to marry me. I was talking about Greek Mythology and I told him that we were one heart that was cut into two pieces. I told him that he was my other half, and he said that I was his missing piece.

I remember when I stopped writing the letters to him. I thought that writing to him would keep my love for him burning until I could love him outwardly. The day I stopped was the day that I decided that in time it may happen or in time it may not. I still have that shoe box though… I still have all the memories.

I remember the day when I went on my first date with Jarsen, he took me to a restaurant and we ate hamburgers and french fries. He said that he was happy to date a girl who would order a hamburger over salad. We laughed, we talked, we flirted, and we ate. He then took me to a lake and we sat on a pier and dangled our feet over the water and we watched the stars. I remember telling him how crazy it is that we are looking at the same night sky that my parents are looking at across the country. He told me that it makes the world seem smaller and less daunting. We talked about our dreams and we talked about our fears…

" _You can't be afraid of anything," he said with a smile, "You know things about this country that no one else knows. I don't see how you can be afraid."_

 _I chuckled, "My biggest fear isn't physical or national… It's – It's, uh, actually quite embarrassing." I looked over at him and saw that he was looking at me. I smiled at him and I kept talking. "My biggest fear is not being able to have my dream come true."_

 _He asked, "What is your dream?"_

 _I turned my head back to the sky and said, "It most definitely won't come true if I tell you."_

I lift my head off of Jarsen's chest and I get a waft of the takeout food he brought: Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese.

I smile up at him and say, "Can we eat?"

He throws his head back in laughter and says, "Of course, baby."

* * *

Finals are right around the corner and I'm swimming in work and reviews. Currently I am a part of seven study groups, three projects, and two group chats of review questions.

My head is filled with political terms and laws that I already know… I have no reason why I am freaking out over all of these tests.

The Western Civilization test was super easy. All I had to do is write a paper about how the industrial revolution impacted the relationships between the European nations in the 19th century.

For my political major, I have to take a series of tests and then I have to debate against my classmates as if I was an actual lawyer. I hope that none of them just bomb the grade because of my title. To be honest, I would rather debate against the teacher so that there would be no bias. Unfortunately, this is college and everyone has to be 'professional' and since I'm the princess I can't have any special treatment.

In the midst of all of these exams, there is one light at the end of the tunnel. I'm really excited because break is coming up and that means that I get to spend time with my family. We decided to go to the Royal Winter Cottage so that we could go skiing. My parents are letting me bring Luna, Marissa, Reagan, Jarsen, Alex, Sam, and Zander.

Last week Sam asked Marissa to be his girlfriend. They have been talking forever but Sam always had reservations because of his brother. Apparently the two were attached at the hip but something happened and Sam left. I think it had to do with Sam and Dean's dad but I'm not sure. Usually, Sam would take off for days at a time to work with Dean but now he said that he's staying in school and he's going to sleep on Alex's couch for a few days until he can either get a dorm or an apartment. Marissa was ecstatic when she heard this because it meant that they could finally date.

Zander and Luna have been dating forever. They were a thing before I got to ASU. I think that they were made for each other because Luna is so outgoing and Zander is the same way. They both are head over heels in love and to be honest, I can't wait to see Zander on the ski hill because he is so clumsy on the ground itself.

* * *

I'm walking out of my apartment and I see Sam walking out of Alex's.

"Say Sam," I say with a smile.

He turns around and smirks at me, "Hi, Emma."

We walk down the hallway and I say, "Where are you going?"

He smiles as says, "I have a law exam soon, I wanted to get the library to study for a bit."

I nod my head, "I'm on my way to Calc… Ugh I don't know why political majors are required to have at least Calc 2 but I hate it."

We start laughing as we step into the elevator.

"I bet it feels nice to know that you have a secure spot at ASU now," I say.

Sam's face drops a little bit and he shrugs his shoulders, "Yeah, I guess."

I look up at him, "Sam, what's up?"

He shakes his head, "Nothing, Emma… it's nothing."

"Sam, you can tell me. I'm your friend. I introduced you to your girlfriend, and I showed you into the guys group that Alex and Jarsen are in. You can tell me anything."

He sighs, "Emma, this is one thing that I can't."

"Why not." I press.

"Because… It's – uh.. Because you wouldn't understand Emma!" He snaps.

The elevator opens but before Sam can get out I press all the buttons and the doors close.

"You're an idiot." Sam hisses, "Emma, somethings are personal. Just because you're the princess and all doesn't mean I have to tell you my life story."

I soften my gaze even though inside I want to scream at him, "Sam. You _always_ do this. You bottle your feelings up and expect them to just go away but they never do. You have to bury the hatchet on things let go. I don't know what is going on with your family life—"

"It's my dad." He says, cutting me off.

I stay silent because he looks like he wants to talk more.

"My mom died when I was a baby, I don't remember her at all, so I was raised by my dad and Dean. We traveled all around the country hunting for a living. We didn't have a home, we just lived in my dad impala for God knows how long. I switched schools almost every week to two weeks until one day, dad sent us off to live with one of his friends named Bobby. Bobby was stationary and he took care of us while dad was away. During that time, I was able to go to the same school for a while. I decided that I wanted to apply for college but when dad heard, he was furious. He always wanted me to join him and Dean in the family business but I hated it. Ever since, he and Dean have been on my case to go off with them and hunt, I always went for a few days and then I found a way out and I came back. A couple weeks ago, dad died…" He trails off, "I talked to Dean and he said that I should go to college because that's where I'm happy."

He looks at me and says, "That's what's wrong. It was all my dad's fault."

I smile, "Sam, it may look like it's your dad's fault, but ultimately he did the right thing. If he hadn't pushed you into the family business, you wouldn't have wanted to get out so badly. If you had a choice in the first place, you might have joined him and Dean on the road. You can't blame your dad for everything… But on the Brightside, you're right where you want to be, so everything is good right?"

He chuckles to himself, "Yeah, yeah I guess."

The elevator doors open and he starts to walk away, but he turns around and says, "Hey, if the whole 'princess thing' doesn't work out, then you should consider counseling. I think you'd be great at it."

I laugh as he walks away. Sam's a good kid, he was one of my first friends when I got here so he means a lot to me. I think that his past is so interesting because I have no idea what I would do without my mom. It doesn't seem possible that someone with such a good head on his shoulders could be so troubled and distraught. I think that Sam is going to do great things and I can't wait to see him succeed. I think that I might make him one of my advisors once I become queen because he deserves so many great things

* * *

The Calc exam was torture, but then again, what math exam is a good one? I hope I did well because I need a B or above to get credit for the class and I most definitely do not want to take this course again. Right now I have a 92% so I hope that I did well enough that It doesn't drop my grade down twelve points, but who knows.

My phone vibrates in my pocket, I grab it and I look at the message icon on the screen.

New Message: Alex P.

Hey Emma, I need your help

can you come to the dining room

by Clarkson Hall?

I text him back saying that I'll be there in five. I hope everything's alright. Alex usually never texts so vaguely...

…

I meet him in the dining hall and he has a huge smile on his face when I see him

"Emma!" Alex exclaims, he stands up and walks over towards me.

"What's going on? You never text that vaguely, is everything ok?" I ask worriedly as he wraps me in a hug.

He starts laughing and pulls away, "I am so glad you're here!"

Before I can get another word out he walks over to the table that he was sitting at. About halfway to the table, he stops and motions for me to follow him. We walk over to the table and we sit down.

"Ok, you're really creeping me out, Alex. What is going on?" I say rubbing my hands together.

He starts laughing, "Ok, so Reagan and I are about to celebrate our two-year anniversary. I need your help to figure out what I should get her."

I stare at him for the longest time.

"You scared the living daylights out of me with your text and the way that you were acting. I thought that something was really wrong… That's _all_ you wanted to say?"

He just sits there smiling like an idiot, "Yeah."

I shake my head and hit him playfully on the arm, "I freaking hate you."

He throws his head back and laughs, "I know"


	8. Chapter 8- Alex

**Hey Ya'll! What's going on? OK so I have a bit of explaining to do but to make up for lost time, I have decided to stick to my original uploading schedule that I did for "Face the Fire", which is every Sunday uploading a new chapter. OK so to the explaining. I hit a really rough patch of writer's block. I know exactly where I want to take the story but I still need to do a lot of building up to the big ending (which I wasn't excited about). So I just sort of lost interest. I was also finishing up schoolwork where I had a new test every week and an English paper due every other week as well as being captain of my school's basketball and tennis teams. Long story short, I was planning on just uploading an announcement that basically told you guys the ending and then that would be it. Then I got a private message that made me realize that people were still reading my story. I thought that since I had lost interest, that you guys did too. When I received the message, I realized that I needed to pull myself up by the bootstraps and write. That's exactly what I did. So here we are, Chapter 8 (An Alex Chapter) To be honest, this one is one of my favorites :). SO! Without further ado, here is chapter 8!**

* * *

 **November 2nd – Alex**

* * *

I have four days… four days until Reagan and I celebrate our two-year anniversary. It's crazy how time flies when you're with someone for so long. I remember all the times when we would dream about being together full time, without any distance between us. I remember all the phone calls until midnight and whispering 'I love you' into the receiver because we didn't want to wake up our families. I remember the first day she came to visit me at ASU, she brought a picnic and we sat on the front steps of the library building and ate chicken salad sandwiches with chips and guacamole. It seems so little, but the little things always count in relationships.

The thing is, have no idea what I'm going to get her for our two-year. Reagan is literally the best gift giver that there is; she always seems to know exactly what I want. For our one-year anniversary, she gave me six pairs of scrubs with my name embroidered on them because I was starting lab classes during the spring semester and scrubs is the proper attire. Unfortunately, I am terrible at giving gifts; I just seem to end up giving her a gift card to some bath product store. I stay away from clothes because I never know what she will like and I sure as hell don't give her any makeup because I don't know the difference between a highlighter and an eyebrow pencil. Therefore, since I have such a bad talent for giving gifts, I've enlisted the help of Emma because she seems to know what Reagan likes.

"What the hell are we doing here?" I ask, as we stop in front of some place called Wendy's Boutique.

Emma throws her head back in laughter, "Gosh, Alex. You are so hopeless. How did you ever manage to get through Christmas and her birthday without any help?"

I shake my head as she laughs, "Ok, just you wait until this Christmas when Troy gives you a shitty gift."

"Jarsen knows to ask for help, unlike some people." She keeps laughing and pulls open the door to the boutique. She walks in and then stops when she realizes that I'm not following her. "Ugh, what are you waiting for Alex?" She asks, "I promise that the clothes won't bite." She motions for me to walk in the store.

As soon as I walk in, I am met with an overwhelming gust of perfume and plastic. It smells like those cheap scented candles that just barely smell like the scent that they are supposed to be. Wendy's Boutique smells like rose mixed with plastic, but more plastic than rose.

I look around the small store and see all sorts of dresses and things that look like dresses but instead of being open at the bottom, they look like they are a pair of shorts. Emma is sifting through all the racks and hangers and whenever she sees something that sparks her interest, she drapes it over her left arm and then resumes sifting.

I walk over to one of those dress-short thingys and I hold it up, "Emma," I call at her. Her brown eyes meet mine and she smiles, "What is this, and why does it have shorts at the bottom?" I ask.

She starts laughing again, "It's called a romper, Alex. It's like a dress and a pair of shorts rolled into one. They are the new trend nowadays because you don't have to go through the effort of trying to match shorts to a shirt or make yourself look presentable enough for a dress."

I nod my head in understanding, but jeans and a t-shirt just seems so much easier than this thing. I turn it around and see that it has a sort of lace pattern on the back. The romper is blue and green with white swirls.

"Do you think that Reagan would like this?" I ask Emma, hoping that maybe I picked out something that my girlfriend would actually wear.

Emma saunters over and takes the romper from my hands, she feels the fabric and flips it over to the back, "Yes, Alex. I think that Reagan would love it," She trails off and puts it back on the rack.

"If you think that she is going to like it, why did you put it back?" I ask as she sifts through the same rack that she put the romper on.

"Because," she says as she moves two more hangers out of the way, "Reagan is not a double extra-large, Alex." She takes out the same romper but this one looks considerably smaller. I catch a glimpse of the size and it reads 'Med' which I assume to be medium.

Men's clothes are all in numbers, there isn't any small, medium, or large. Pants and shorts have two numbers, the size of the inseam and the size of the waist. Shirts have one number and they range from 2-22, two being the smallest.

I've never really understood women's fashion because it just seems so vague. I mean the terms 'small, medium, large, etc.' are all so ambiguous. Someone could be a large in one store and a small in another.

Emma snaps her fingers in front of me, "Earth to Alex."

I shake my head, focusing my eyes on the bag that she has in her hands, "Oh no," I say, "You can't pay for that, Emma, it's my gift."

She laughs, "I didn't pay for anything, Alex. This boutique is owned by my mom's second cousin, Wendy. Everything that I get here, I get for free." Her brown eyes twinkle triumphantly. "My mom helped Wendy open this store because she always wanted to be a fashion designer. Wendy couldn't be a designer because she was a five during the caste system and fives weren't allowed to be designers. When mom and dad abolished the caste system, the first thing that mom did when the castes were gone is give Wendy this store." Emma shrugs her shoulders. She smiles at the cashier, "Thanks Kathryn! Have a wonderful day!"

The girl at the cashier, Kathryn, smiles back at her, "No problem Emma, I hope that your girlfriend likes her gift, Alex."

I chuckle to myself, "Thank you so much, I know that she will love it." I look over at Emma, "I also have had the best help ever."

Emma laughs, "Stop sucking up to me, you're such a tool." She hits me with the bag containing the romper.

"Stop, you can't damage the romper, I went through so much trouble to get this." I laugh back at her.

Emma laughs louder as she pushed open the door to the boutique. We both are making fun of the precious romper as Emma and I walk down the street. The lights of the stores that are open illuminate the dark side walk. Emma's blonde hair looks vibrate and it seems to glow in the dark. She is smiling and laughing and everything seems to be perfect.

I feel like I've known her forever, like we met long ago and we are friends. Everything is so easy with Emma, she and I complement each other. I love her like a sister and I can't imagine my life without her, to be honest.

When I first heard that the princess of Illea was going to be going to ASU, I flipped out because I've always admired Emma on TV, I never thought that I would get the chance to actually get to know her. When Emma first came, I was taken aback by her genuineness. She was so humble and natural to be around. She didn't make you feel intimidated by her power and her title. She didn't make you feel small because of her giant significance. She made everyone feel like they had a place; like they were destined for greatness. All of us believe her too, she told us stories about her classes that she had to take at the palace. She mentioned her diplomatic trips to visit foreign countries and see her friends. She talks about her duties at the palace and how she still has to write in to the palace every week so that the security team can monitor the paparazzi that Emma has to deal with.

It's truly amazing that she is pulling this off, the whole college thing. She never has mentioned why she is here though. I've always wondered why she actually did come to ASU because it seems so insignificant when she had the top of the line political and law classes and she is one of the people who can change and create laws. Why does she need ASU?

"Ok, next stop," Emma says, her dark brown eyes beaming. I look up and see the sign that says, Sephora.

"What is Sephora?" I ask, furrowing my eyebrows, trying to figure out which language it's from.

Emma sighs, "Oh young Padawan. Sephora is the make-up heaven for all the devoted make-up artists and beauty queens. It's literally the store if you want to buy makeup."

I nod my head and let Emma guide me through the door. Unlike Wendy's Boutique, Sephora smells like different sprays and hair products. I've been around Reagan enough times when she is getting ready to know the smell of hairspray.

I look around the store and it is filled with different types of colors and trays and all sorts of shadows, liquids, and sparkly things.

Emma leads me directly to a section filled with a bunch of different colored trays that are filled with little pans of colors.

"These are eye shadows, Alex," she picks up a tray, "And the containers are called palettes." She sets the palette down and she wanders through the aisles of different eye shadows.

"Reagan is very simple, so I think that she would want a palette of nude colors." She says, concentrated on the different pans of colors, "Hmm. Maybe this one?"

She holds up a tray filled with lots of browns and creams, it reminds me of when Reagan likes to wear usually. She is a simple person, most of her outfits don't have too much going on.

I nod my head, "Yeah I think that one looks nice."

Emma smiles at me, "Ok I think that you should be good. A super cute romper and an eye shadow palette are the perfect gifts. Just make sure that you take her out to a nice restaurant."

We walk up to the counter and I pay for the palette. Emma turns around and starts to look at the smaller items on sale, you know, the ones that are like spur of the moment purchases. The lady at the cash register smiles and says, "Wow it's really nice of you to buy this for your girlfriend." She motions over to Emma who is looking at something in a spray bottle. Her back is to us and her blonde hair is waving slightly from the front door of the store opening and closing about ten feet away from us.

I chuckle to myself, "Oh, Emma?" I start laughing about how funny it is that this lady thinks that Emma and I are dating.

As I continue laughing, Emma walks up right next to me and says, "What's so funny?"

The lady at the cash register looks up from her computer and sees Emma, her jaw drops to the floor, "You – You're Princess Emmalina."

Emma smiles and chuckles a little bit, "Yes, I am. Please just call Emma, I hate the titles."

"I am, Eve… Emma." She says her name with difficulty because no one ever mentions a royal family member without using their title. Eve looks over between us and says, "Since you, sir, are buying this palette for your girlfriend, I will give you a discount."

I look at Emma and she smiles and winks at me. Eve looks back at her computer and starts to ring up the discount. I lean over and whisper into Emma's ear, "Just go with it." She nudges me as her acknowledgement.

After we finish in Sephora, Emma and I walk out of the store and we both start laughing profusely.

"I cannot believe that she thought that we were dating," Emma says between laughs.

"I wonder what will happen when she realizes that we actually are not dating," I reply

She shakes her head and waves her hands, "I bet she will start a rumor that will turn into the new media buzz for all of ten minutes. After that, when they realize that she has no name of this mysterious person, people will just assume that she was making it up to get recognized."

I nod my head; we start walking down the street that we came. Now there are not as many shops open and there are not too many people roaming downtown streets of Ryilee Lane. Emma and I are just walking in silence. It doesn't feel weird though, like most silences do. It's like we have a mutual respect of each other's thoughts. I imagine that since Emma is a princess and all she really has to think about things before she says them, because any word that's out of place could offend someone.

She's walking a little bit in front of me, her hands just barely swinging at her sides. I smile to myself, she is so determined and she knows what she wants and how to get it. It must be nice to have that much control over your destiny.

We keep walking down East Ryilee lane as we make our way to Rhoades, the apartment complex. I check my phone and I see that I have seven missed messages and two calls from some of the boys. The screen says that the time is 10:17 but it doesn't seem like it to me.

Emma and I make our way past the lobby and into the stairwell. We start the treacherous climb up six flights of stairs because we were both dumb enough the choose the six floor for our apartments. Well, Emma did choose it because she was placed there by Mr. Lionel, I chose the damn sixth floor.

As we finally summit at out floor we open the door and walk into the hallway. I walk over to 6-27 and Emma heads of 6-24. We just stand outside our doors, but before Emma can open hers I turn around.

"Emma?" I ask, she looks back at me and raises her eyebrows, "Do you ever get tired of it all?"

She turns completely around, "All of what?"

I shrug and sit down on the ground, "Everything, the whole princess thing, paparazzi, having to write to the security team every week; doesn't it get to be too much?"

Emma sits down on her wall too. We are facing each other and our feet just barely touch, "Yeah, sometimes, but then I remember what I do it all for." She exhales, "I'm doing all of this not just for me. I'm doing this because of my dreams." Her eyes darken.

I clear my throat, "So, what's your dream?"

Emma closes her eyes and exhales. When she opens them, they are filled with some sort of emotion, one that I can't tell. "If I told you that, Alex, it most definitely wouldn't come true." She gives me some sort of a smile.

I look at her and I just think about the stress that she's under, "You don't have to tell me, but know that I'm always rooting for you. I want this dream of yours to come true."

Emma chuckles to herself, "Me too, Alex, but the one thing that I can say is that maybe some dreams aren't supposed to come true. To be honest, I thought that coming here would serve one purpose and that I was only supposed to be here because of this wish of mine. Now that I'm here, I realized that I'm ok if my dream doesn't come true. I found something here that just as amazing as my dream. So if it doesn't come true, then I know that I'll be ok." She looks down at our feet and how they almost touch. She moves hers over so that she can hit my feet. We sit there and play footsie for a little bit before Emma pulls in her feet and says, "It's getting late, I need to sleep for my final prep tomorrow."

I nod in agreement, "I completely lost track in of time. Thanks again, Emma."

She smiles over her shoulder at me as she opens the door to her apartment, "Always, Alex."

She walks into her apartment and closes the door.

I exhale and lean my head against the wall behind me. Emma may have left but I'm still sitting in the middle of the hallway with my hand on two plastic bags full of things that I'm going to give to Reagan.

I laugh at the evening that I've had with Emma, and how awesome it was to just see her outside her element, doing things that I've never seen her do before.

I slide my feet up and stand up reluctantly. I don't want to leave because when I leave and go into my room, I know that the night will be over; that everything that just happened will be memories.

I twist the key into the lock and I walk into my apartment. Sam is crashed on the couch and the other two doors are closed signaling that Lucas and Tyler are sleeping as well.

I wander into my room and shut the door. I place the shopping bags on my desk and collapse onto my bed. I smile as I remember the evening and I laugh as I remember all the jokes that we came up with tonight. I close my eyes and let myself drift into slumber.

* * *

 **November 6th**

* * *

"Happy Anniversary baby," I say to Reagan as I kiss her on the forehead.

She looks absolutely stunning. Her hair is lightly curled and she is wearing a red and white dress with small cap sleeves. She has on a pair of simple white high heels and the bracelet that I gave her for Christmas last year. Her make up is very simple and natural looking and she has dark red lipstick on her lips.

"Happy anniversary, Alex." She smiles at me, "So, what are we doing tonight?"

I grab her hand, it fits so perfectly into mine, "Now what kind of hopeless romantic would I be if I told you now?"

We both laugh as I guide her out of her dorm complex and we walk down the street. I love hearing her high heels click on the ground, I'm not sure why but the sound is just comforting. It makes me realize that she is actually here and she is actually mine.

We turn a corner onto Downtown Avenue and I stop in front of a restaurant.

"Remember the first place that I took you when you started at ASU?" I ask.

She chuckles, "Yeah, you took me to Rosie's Café."

I smile, she does remember, "Well, this place is not Rosie's but I hope that it becomes just as special."

I open the door to a restaurant named Beau Steakhouse, and we step inside. Immediately we are met with the smell of steak and potatoes and different spices that I can't even begin to name. It's a nice smell, all the flavors blending together.

I lead Reagan by her hand to the counter where the hostess is and I say, "Hello, we have a reservation for two."

The lady, who is wearing a name tag that reads Faye, flips through a books and then says, "What is your name?"

"Alex, Alex Payne." I say, squeezing Reagan's hand.

Faye flipps through her book and says, "Sir, I'm sorry but the reservation under Alex Payne is not until December 6th."

I look at her with confused eyes, "Wha – What do you mean?"

She looks at me and says, "What did you say when you made the reservation?"

"I told the man on the phone that I needed a reservation for the 6th." I tell her, very sternly.

She chuckles, "That's the issue. Our waiting list is very long; the person you spoke to probably put you down for the sixth of December because of how long our waiting list is for reservations."

I exhale sharply and say, "You can't just give us a table? You have to have one spare table for two."

Faye shakes her head and says, "I'm sorry sir, there is nothing that I can do at this point; however, I hope to see you on December sixth."

Everything in my stomach feels like it is going to come up, I screwed everything up. I thought that I took care of it but obviously I didn't. Now our two-year anniversary is ruined because I made a stupid mistake. I can't believe that I had this perfect night planned and it all went to shit.

Reagan squeezes my hand, bring me out of my trance, "Alex, baby, it's ok we can find somewhere else to eat." She smiles at me and I just nod my head.

"OK," I say to my girlfriend. I turn back to Faye, "Thank you."

She nods her head and Reagan and I turn to leave.

Our hunt to find another place that is open leaves us very discouraged because there are barely any restaurants near ASU. There is Beau Steakhouse and then a bunch of fast food places.

Reagan and I decide on QuikBurger.

Walking into the fast food joint, it doesn't smell nearly as nice as the steakhouse. The bright red and yellow colors illuminate the entire store, making it seem like a clown threw up all over the place. Reagan and I wait in line and when we finally are able to order we both get the same thing: A double cheeseburger, medium side of fries, and a small vanilla shake.

"Your number is 57, please have a seat and we will call you as soon as your food is ready." The man at the register says.

We nod and turn to find a pleasant place to sit. Looking over the entire restaurant, there are many tables and chairs as well as a few booths. Reagan and I decide on a booth in the corner of the restaurant so that we can have a little bit of privacy.

As we sit down I look over the QuikBurger receipt and I shake my head, "Baby, I'm so sorry I messed everything up for tonight."

Reagan places her hand on top of mine and she laughs, "Alex, you didn't mess anything up. When will you realize that I'm not dating you for the fancy restaurants, the only thing that I could ever want for tonight is to spend time with you. All I ever need is you."

I smile up at her and say, "Do you know how much I love you?"

She smiles, "How much?"

"I love you more than Sam's brother Dean loves pie. I love you more than Professor Dutch loves using word parts. I love you more than every star in the sky. I love you more than any one person can physically love another person. I love you, Reagan, and I will always, _always_ choose you."

She squeezes my hand, "I will choose you for ever ever. One ever is for life here on earth. The other ever is for life after death; I will love you for ever ever."

"Number 57! Order Ready!" Someone from behind the counter calls.

Reagan goes to stand up but I stop her, "Not tonight, m'lady. I am your knight in shining armor, I have the pleasure of waiting on you."

The food was greasy and so unhealthily delicious, Reagan and I talked about the past two years and we talked about our future. It feels so nice to have everything planned out in some sort of fashion. It's like we both know who we are going to love forever. Sure, we may be young, but we have a lot of years ahead of us.

After dinner, I took her to a park where she opened her gifts. She loved the romper and eyeshadow palette. She gave me new cufflinks for my suit and a new wallet. The gifts weren't extravagant but they somehow represented us: we are simple people who don't need a lot of things to be happy. All we need is each other.


	9. Chapter 9- Emma

**Hey everybody! I just wanted to say thank you for all the love on the previous chapter, I was so excited to update for you guys. Ok so as promised, here is Chapter 9! I also want to make sure that you guys knew that this chapter has some very deep and darker topics in it so I wanted to say that there is a** TRIGGER WARNING **. I've dealt with some of the issues that are spoken about in the chapter and I wanted to write about it to take away the stigma from it. I hope that you guys understand and I hope you guys like the chapter! So without further ado, here is Chapter 9!**

* * *

 **November 10th – Emma**

* * *

"Mom, I swear that everything is going to be fine," I assure her, "You don't have to interview everyone that I'm bringing to the ski house."

She laughs on the other end, "I know, I know. I was just teasing you, Emma. A mom has to have some fun as well."

We both crack up into the line. My mom and I have been planning this ski trip for a long time and we finally got everyone to agree to go. I've always spent Christmas with my family and since I've been at college, my mom and dad are determined to spend time with me on Christmas. At first they wanted all my friends to come to the palace to celebrate Christmas. I told them that we really couldn't do that because I knew that my friends' families would want to spend the holiday with their children as well, so we agreed on making a ski trip up north and inviting everyone to come along.

To be completely honest, my parents really only wanted to meet Alex and Jarsen. They wanted to meet Alex because he was basically the reason that I went to ASU. They wanted to meet Jarsen because he is my boyfriend and my dad is feeling very over protective.

I remember the day that Jarsen asked me to be his girlfriend.

Jarsen and I were sitting on my bed, it was pretty late at night and we were having a conversation about our goals and aspirations in life.

"All I want is to make people happy," he said, "I want to raise a family, have a loving wife, and inspire people to be great. To be the best versions of themselves possible."

I smile at him, "I want to inspire people too. I want people to know that they can make a difference and that they can make changes in the world around them. I don't want anyone to think of themselves as insignificant, everyone has a place and a purpose and I want to help people realize how important that they truly are."

Jarsen's eyes sparkle when he says, "Emma, I need to ask you a question."

I furrow my eyebrows when I reply, "Go for it."

"I don't know if you feel the same way that I do, but I want you to know that I really like you. I think that you may feel the same way but all I know is that when I look at you, I know that I want to be more than just friends, I want to be able to call you mine." He says, the corners of his lips tugging up into a smile.

I put my hand on his cheek and I smile, "I feel it too, Jarsen, being with you feels right."

Takes my hand and squeezes it, "Then will you be my girlfriend?

I laugh and say, "One hundred times, yes."

Jarsen and I just smile and stare at each other. It feels so right with us, like we were supposed to end up like this. I originally came to ASU to win Alex over and end up with him, but now that idea seems so foreign. To me, I will always love Alex. No matter who you are or what you do, your first love will always hold a piece of your heart. Even though I never loved Alex in reality, I have loved him and he will always be with me.

But now I have Jarsen.

The light hits his green eyes and I can't help myself. I pull my hand from his grasp and I reach up and wrap my arms around his neck. He turns to face me and slowly we lean in.

His lips gently brush against mine for the briefest of moments and then we both smile. I can feel his warm breath against my lips and my brain is shut down. I don't even think about what I'm doing when I pull him closer. Jarsen gently presses his mouth against mine and I don't even know how to describe the feeling that shoots through my body when our lips finally meet.

The entire time that Jarsen and I have spent time together before this moment has been platonic and flirty. We haven't don't anything besides flirt and playfully tickle each other. This is the first time we have ever kissed and I am so glad that we waited because now I know that he isn't just kissing me to say that he has kissed the princess. He is kissing me because he cares about me and because he sees us going somewhere.

We deepen the kiss, his tongue exploring my mouth. I'm not sure what I am thinking but I know that whatever it is, I can't even tell because my heart has taken over my brain. His arms snake around my waist and soon I am pressed to him. His strong arms supporting me and my arms holding him for dear life, not ever wanting to let go.

We pull away reluctantly, breathing hard because of all the emotions that just ran through us. I exhale sharply and slide my hands from around Jarsen's neck and running them down his chest. I can feel his muscles through the fabric of his light blue shirt. Both of our chests rising and falling as we try to catch our breath.

"Wow," Jarsen whispers first, "I – I don't know what to say."

I let out a breathy laugh, "That was some kiss."

We just kind of stare at each other for a little bit. It isn't like we both don't have something to say, I know that I could say a myriad of things and I'm sure that Jarsen could too; but, all we want is to just enjoy the company of us.

Us.

Jarsen and I.

My _boyfriend_.

This person sitting in front of my is mine. He is the person that I have chosen to hold hands with. He is the person that I have chosen to kiss. He is the person that I have chosen to become my best friend. He is the person that I have chosen to try and create a life with.

If it doesn't work out, then at least I had the opportunity to be with him. To call him mine.

His green eyes sparkle in the moonlight and I just smile to myself.

"What?" Jarsen asks, he reaches up and barely presses his index finger under my chin to turn my head toward him.

I shake my head, "It's nothing."

He chuckles and drags his finger around my chin up to my lips, tracing the curves over and over again, "That look doesn't seem like nothing."

I clasp my hand around his and kiss his finger before I pull it away from my lips, "Well if you keep doing that, we won't be talking at all because I'll just be inclined to kiss you." I smile up at him.

His eyes widen, "Decisions, decisions… It's a good thing I didn't ask you to be my girlfriend just because you can kiss well." He winks at me and I burst out into laughter, "I asked you because you are incredibly intelligent and well spoken. I love to try and figure out what you are thinking because you just look so cute when you're deep in thought. Your eyebrows start to lift up and your eyes narrow because you're trying to solve all the world's problems. You bite the lower part of your lip and your fingernails play with your fingernails. You start to stare off into space and you just sit there, thinking. I find it to be the most interesting thing in the world because you have no idea that you are doing it, but yet, I know."

I smile, no one has ever paid that much attention to me thinking. "I was telling myself that I made the right choices. I has so much doubt when I first told my parents that I wanted to go to ASU, it was such a huge step for me because I have never been to a place without what seems to be a thousand guards around me; but yet, this has been an amazing decision. I was worried that I would surround myself with people that I wouldn't connect with and that I wouldn't feel like myself with; I found you guys and th. at was a great decision too. I was afraid that I would find myself falling for someone who wouldn't show me who they really were, and I would end up falling for someone that my imagination perfected; but I found you, and you are my best decision yet. So I was thinking that I did make all the right choices, I wouldn't change a thing."

Jarsen puts his hands on either side of my face, "I'm so glad that I can call you mine."

We kiss again, this time his lips feel familiar and warm. We move the same way as last time but right now the fireworks are brand new.

"Ok Mom," I say into the line, bringing me out of my memories of Jarsen and I, "Everyone is in, so there isn't anything to worry about, people wise I mean."

"So, honey, I was going to ask how you are doing?" She says, her voice lifting at the end of her sentence.

I furrow my eyebrows, "What do you mean?"

She exhales, "I was just wondering how you are with the hole, Alex situation."

I feel my shoulders drop and then I realize something, "You know, mom, at first I was pretty devastated because I thought that I had no chance, that he loved someone else and I literally had no reason to be at ASU because Alex was my reason. Now, I realize that I have so much more to do here than just fight for a guy's heart that I obviously couldn't have. I love it here, the atmosphere and everything, it all just seems so perfect and real and mine. Now I have a devoted boyfriend that I can't imagine my life without, I have great friends, and I have a school where the education is incredible. So the Alex situation is ok. I'm ok. I don't need to be with Alex to be happy."

I can hear her smile through the phone, "Honey, all I have ever wanted is for you to realize your own happiness."

* * *

 **November 14th**

* * *

It's almost time for school to let out for Christmas break, that means that it's almost time for the huge ski retreat with all of my friends.

Luna, Marissa, Reagan, and I decided to all go and get manicures and pedicures in order to pamper ourselves and get into a holiday spirit.

"OK," Marissa says, "I think that Nails and Beyond is the best place around. It has like so many three star reviews on RALP."

"What the hell is RALP?" Reagan asks, laughing in the process.

Luna rolls her eyes and answers, "It's this app that Marissa is obsessed with. Basically every business can be commented on, reviewed, and rated so that people know how good it is or not before trying it out."

"It's literally a life saver," Marissa chimes in, looking up from her phone and nodding her head profusely.

I laugh at her zeal, "I thought that three stars was pretty average for a business… Isn't five stars the best?"

Marissa shakes her head, "No. RALP judges on a scale of one to three stars. So Nails and Beyond has a really good rating."

I nod and we all make our way into the salon.

We are greeted by the smell of acetone and lotion. The entire business is basically a big rectangle. Off to the right there is the front desk and next to that are different smaller desks with nail technicians at each station. Further back on the right side of the room there is a row of pedicure chairs. The chairs are big and brown leather with a small pool of water where you put your feet in. The left side of the room is a complete mirror to the right, just without the check in desk.

Luna walks up to the desk and says, "Hi! We have an appointment for four under the name Luna Turner."

The lady at the desk runs her index finger down the length of the page. She stops on a name and says, "Okay, Miss. Turner, your technicians will be with you shortly."

Luna smiles and says, "Thank you so much!"

We all sit and wait for the people to come and take us to our chairs. We start talking about the end of the semester and everything that we are going to do over Christmas break. We talk about the ski trip and how it is going to be so much fun because we are going as a group. We talk about our families' traditions around Christmas time. We talk about what our parents think about our boyfriends. We just talk and gossip, but it's so much fun.

Growing up, all my friends who were girls lived so far away. They were always there to talk to but it was so hard because we were all training to be the queens that our country may need. There was also the issue of all of us being from different time zones and when Sabeena would call me, I would be dead asleep and then I would try and call her back but she would be asleep.

It is so cool to have girlfriends that are present and I can talk to them always. It just is so nice because we all connected instantly and we have so much in common. It's the clique that I never had growing up.

I don't really remember the nail appointment because those pedicure chair has massaging capabilities and I completely fell asleep. Apparently that wasn't the first time that someone has fallen asleep in the chair because when I woke up, my nails and my toes were all done.

I look around the room and rub my eyes with my right hand. I see that Luna and Marissa passed out and Reagan is sitting in her chair with her headphones in flipping through a magazine.

I wave at her and I catch her attention. She pulls out one of her earbuds and says, "Hey, how was your nap?"

I smile at her and I say, "Ugh, It was so needed. I feel a hundred percent better."

She closes the magazine and takes out the other ear bud, "Hey, thanks."

I look at her confused, "For what?"

She laughs, "For helping Alex pick out my gift for our two-year. It was super sweet."

I chuckle to myself, "He wasn't supposed to tell you that I helped out."

She shrugs, "I just figured it out. You and him are so close I guessed that you helped him out because I know for a fact that he doesn't have any idea what an eyeshadow palette is."

We both start laughing, "It was no problem. Alex is such a good friend and you're one of my best friends, I was so happy to be able to make you feel special," I say.

She smiles, "You're such an amazing friend, Emma. I am so glad that I met you."

I wave my hand at her, "Oh stop."

"It's true!" She protests, "You are such a great listener and I have told you so much and you just accept it. I can't thank you enough for that."

Reagan and I have gotten very close. Reagan told me things that she has never told Alex mostly because she thought that he wouldn't understand where she was coming from. When Reagan was young, she began to become very depressed because she was bullied all throughout middle school because of her intelligence. She felt so much emotional pain that she thought that the only way to get rid of it was to self-harm. She started out by taking plastic kitchen knives and cutting along her ankles, she would just go back and forth until small lines of blood would form. At night, after she finished, she would cry into her pillows because her ankles burned and burned. They were on fire and then she would shower and the pain would flare up again. She was determined to not feel any emotional pain so she caused herself physical pain to take her mind off of the bullies at school.

Soon, summer came along and Reagan realized that she couldn't cut along her ankles anymore because she would be wearing shorts. She switched places and started cutting along the outsides of her wrists, trying to stay away from any major veins and stuff. She would hide them by wearing lots of bracelets and using concealer to cover up any redness that was extraneous. As her ankle scars were healing and becoming more normal, she would wear gladiator shoes to hide the majority of the scars and then eventually she could wear flip flops because they ended up fading enough to where they were inconspicuous.

She started on the outside of her wrists and then started working her way into the insides. Once she started on the insides, she just worked her way up her entire forearm until she hit the place where her arm would fold. She would use anything from pipe cleaners to steak knives to broken keys. She just didn't want to feel.

One day she realized that she wanted to be ok. That she wanted to lover herself and not be ashamed of who she was. Reagan stopped self-harming and she hasn't done it since. It's been a struggle and sometimes she thinks that one cut on her ankle would hurt. One cut on her wrist would make her feel better; but then she realizes that it wouldn't. She started to love herself and loving herself didn't mean causing herself pain. Reagan hasn't cut herself for three years.

I look up at Reagan and I smile at her, "Reagan, I am so proud of you. You are so strong and I believe in you so much. You mean the world to me and I don't know what I would do without you."

She smiles and says, "You have no idea how much that means to me."

But I think that I do. I think that I know what someone's love and support can do to a hurting heart.

It's what happened when Isabella went into her coma, when Jarsen was looking after me. He helped he through my struggles and even though there isn't any news on Isabella's condition, the doctors think that she will wake up soon. I don't know what I would have done if Jarsen hadn't believed that I would pull through. Just like Reagan pulled through her struggle, I did as well. That's why we get along so well. That's why she's one of my best friends.

We finish up at Nails and Beyond and decide to go to a nearby café for lunch. The morning was amazing with my friends and I am so glad that today is a girls' day!


	10. Chapter 10- Alex

**Hey Guys! Sorry that this is a shorter chapter, I thought that it was an Emma week so I started writing and then I went back and I saw that it was an Alex chapter and I had to start over :( Anyways, I wanted to upload today for you all so here is the chapter! Next week we will get into the much anticipated vacation! I am so excited to see where the story is going to go (even though I already know). Anyways! Without further ado, here is Chapter Ten!**

* * *

 **Alex**

 **November 20th**

* * *

Today is the day.

Finally, my last exam of the fall semester of my junior year is coming to an end. After this last test, I will start my applications for medical school and then hopefully I will only have less than nine years to finish med school and residency. Then I will be a pediatrician and I can help so many people.

Medical Terminology class has been my downfall for this semester. I had to make about five hundred flashcards a week as well as read sixty pages in my textbook. It was all busy work, but if someone didn't do it, then they were completely doomed for the test every other week.

My head is spinning with all sorts of word parts and nouns. Meta, Beta, Tarsal, Phalange, Carpel, etc. So many different types of words that I was required to know. Tyler was so tired of quizzing me after the third week of this stupid class and to be honest, I was tired of memorizing.

That was the toughest part: Memorizing. Most of the time when I had to memorize something, it was a one-time deal. I didn't have to worry about building off of it or trying to use it in different contexts down the road. All I had to do was just remember the subject for one test and then forget it. Now? I have to remember and be able to use it because all these dumb word parts build up to some thirteen syllable medical word and I hate it.

Walking to Professor Callahan's class, I can feel my head already pounding and my hands trembling. The door to lecture room A404 is ominous and haunting. Knowing that this is my last exam makes me eager to walk in and get the test over with. Knowing that my acceptance letter is riding on this grade makes me dread walking into that room where the white stone walls will make me feel like I'm in some sort of mental institution where I can only say word parts not full sentences.

Taking deep breaths, I grab the steel door knob and I shudder as the cold metal hits my hand. I twist the knob and pull open the door. I walk into the room and see that other people in my class are sitting at their chairs and desks.

Will is sitting at his desk staring at his study guide, viciously highlighting words and suffixes

Tanya is bouncing her knees under her desk, staring at the board in front of her.

Sage has one hand covering her study guide and she is mumbling under her breath and then looking under her hand.

Harper is tapping his black pen on his desk and trying not to looks as if he feels completely unprepared for this test.

I take my seat and try to take deep breaths as I watch the other students trickle into the room.

The clock on the wall hits 10:45 and Professor Callahan walks into the room.

"Good Morning class," He addresses, looking smug around the room, "Now that you all have been though your required semester of Medical Terminology, I hope that you feel ready for the final test of this course. Also, the final test before many of you all apply to medical school. I am not going to remind you how important this grade is because most of you all know. If you do not pass this exam, then the last grade on your transcript is not appealing and it shows lack of determination during the end of the semester. So, you have two hours' maximum to finish this test. If you go over, then every minute that you spend extra will be a five-point deduction. My advice is to finish early."

Callahan passes out all the exams.

I write my name at the top.

I answer the first ten questions.

I look at the clock. Twenty minutes down.

I panic.

I answer fifteen more questions. Fifty to go.

I look at the clock again. Forty five minutes down.

I panic.

I answer the next thirty questions as fast as I can.

I look at the clock. One hour and thirty minutes down.

I panic.

I have twenty more to do and thirty minutes to do them.

I answer the next ten questions. People start turning in their tests

I look at the clock. Ten minutes left.

I finish the next ten questions with two minutes to spare.

I stand up and walk through the desks up to where Callahan is sitting.

I place the test on his desk, he doesn't even look up as he grabs the paper and sets it into his pile.

I look at the label on the pile: "On Time"

I exhale and walk away; I made it in time.

Leaving the room, I have a giant smile plastered on my face because I did it. I finished my last requirement that I needed to apply for medical school. Now all I have to worry about is the ski trip with Emma and her family, then Christmas back home.

* * *

 **November 24th**

* * *

"OK guys, we only have like three days before my parents come and pick us up ok?" Emma says from her couch. She decided to call this meeting to talk about the trip with us all. Emma, Jarsen, Sam, Marissa, Zander, Luna, Reagan, and I are all crowded into the girls' apartment.

Emma is sitting on Jarsen's lap in a chair on the right side of the living room. Marissa, Sam, Zander, and Luna are all sharing the couch and Reagan and I are sitting in the loveseat.

We all nod our heads and Emma continues, "Ok so I know that you guys are probably worried about traveling with my parents and brother. My advice is to be yourselves because my parents aren't going to do anything or say anything to the press. Also, they're not going to hit you with any legal jargon if you don't want them to."

Sam says, "What are they like Emma? You're the first member of the Royal Family that I have met."

She smiles and leans against Jarsen's chest, "They're actually really chill. My mom is awesome. She has a sense of humor and a contagious laugh. She is super clumsy but she has gotten better at that as the years go on. She isn't very soft spoken but she doesn't really say anything too mean to anyone. I remember this one time when we were in Italy and she was carrying this really expensive jar that we bought for Aunt Nicoletta and uncle Ricardo. She was turning a corner and a maid ran into her and mom dropped the jar and it shattered all over the palace floor. The maid was so embarrassed but mom just started laughing. She told the maid that she was sorry and that she would clean up the mess. The maid didn't have any of that, but mom insisted and she ended up sweeping the broken jar off of the Italian palace's floor." Emma remembers, "That's my mom. She's selfless. She will make breakfast every day while we are at the cabin and she will wash all the dishes. If you even offer she will laugh and say no. She is like any other mother. The only difference is that she has something on her head.

"My dad is basically the same way, although his speech is a little more educated than normal. I mean, he grew up in the palace so sometimes he is a little unaware of some trends and stuff. Mostly he will be trying to make horrible jokes and to get you guys to laugh. The only person that actually has something to worry about with impressing him is Jarsen; but I have no doubt that he will love you by the end of the trip," She directs that last part to her boyfriend.

Jarsen squeezes Emma against his chest, "Thanks babe."

I grab Reagan's hand and hold onto it. It is actually really nice when all of your friends have significant others because no one feels left out. Everyone has their partner and everyone feels loved and appreciated and no one is jealous.

Emma looks at all of us again, "Ok so basically I just don't want you guys to be freaked out. Just be yourselves because I love all of you guys so much and I know that my parents will love you all as well."

We all nod our heads, it all seems more real now that we are going to be spending two weeks up north with Emma and her family. I am surprised by my behavior because I thought that I would be freaking out because Emma's mom and dad are the king and queen and they are literally the most powerful people in the country, but for some reason I'm not worried. I don't know, it just feels like I know them. I have been watching the report for so many years, I've grown up under their influence. I remember that my mom would watch the old videos from King Maxon's selection and I feel like I watched them fall in love and I watch them rule every day. I'm not nervous because I feel already a part of the family.

* * *

 _ **QUESTION OF THE WEEK!**_

 **What is one thing that you want to see in this book?**

 ** _MY ANSWER-_ I want to see Emma realize what she is capable of doing**

 **Remember to leave a review! I love hearing from you guys! Also answer the question! Who knows, maybe some of you guys want to see things that I've planned to happen :)**

 **Happy Reading**

 **xoxo, Rosie 3**


	11. Chapter 11- Emma

**Hey Guys! I loved hearing what you guys wanted to see! Now I 'm just going to remind you that I was just wondering what you guys were looking for. I actually have a really cool plan for where the story is going and I am so excited! Thank you so much for sticking around so long because my update was really spotty in the beginning. Now I am back with full length chapters and I hope that you guys like the quality of this story a lot better because I have been trying to work on my writing so much with this story. Ok and I wanted to say that in this chapter I put a song, and this is a song that I wrote so please be nice :) as I have mentioned before, it takes a lot for me to put songs on here because most of them are personal so please keep the mean comments to yourself :) OK so without further ado, here is Chapter 11!**

* * *

 **November 24th – Emma**

* * *

November is my favorite time of the year because it isn't Christmas time but it is still cold enough to be in the holiday spirit. When I was little my mom and dad would always take some time off in November because they knew that it was my favorite time of the year. Andrew was more of an April person because he likes outdoor sports. My idea of a fun time is staying inside, by the fire, watching a movie and drinking hot chocolate with cinnamon sprinkled on top.

A few years ago, we stopped the November traditions. I started to get busier with my schedule and mom and dad were figuring out the country. We stopped watching movies in the theatre room and I stopped drinking hot chocolate with cinnamon. Andrew and I were left to have dinner alone and my parents became more and more stressed out. It was terrible and I hated every November since then.

Until now.

Jarsen snakes his hands around my waist and kisses me behind me ear. I smile at the contact, thankful that I have him as my support system through this. Leaning back against him, I let my bag fall off my shoulder and land on the floor with a thud. Jarsen tightens his grip and I just surrender myself into his strong embrace.

Everyone around me is talking and carrying on but I am here, literally shaking in my boots because of my excitement. The November that I love is back in action and I couldn't be happier.

Sam and Marissa hold hands in the corner of the lobby, Sam circling his thumb on the back of her hand. Marissa has her headphones on and her eyes closed. That's the one thing that Marissa and I have in common, we both listen to music with our eyes closed. I'm not sure why but I always close my eyes and I focus on the lyrics and melodies because I have such a soft spot for good music. Being a lyricist makes me more inclined to like music when the words mean more than what is on the surface. Marissa is the same way, she always focuses on the beats and the chord progressions.

Luna and Zander are on their phones across the room. They always play this multiplayer race car game against each other. Luna has won a good seven times, but Zander won't accept the fact that he lost to his girlfriend, so he keeps challenging her to rematches. I love how Luna and Zander just fit together, they are literally perfect for each other because they both complement each other in the best way possible.

Alex and Reagan are talking on one of the sofas. I can see them smiling and laughing. My heart twinges with pain at the realization that Alex is so happy with someone else. Every now and then I remember that shoe box in the bottom of my closet and how it's filled with letters, notes, songs, and drawings.

I grab Jarsen's hands that are carefully be places on my abdomen and say, "I'll be right back.

As I untangle myself from him and run to the elevator, I stuff my hand into my pockets and grab my apartment key. The elevator buzzes as it arrives on the first floor. I slide into the door and press the six button as hard as the thumb will allow me. The doors take forever to close but when they do, the ride up seems to take even longer. I bounce my heels on the floor and I tap my fingers on the side of my thighs. The elevator dings and I race out of the doors as soon as they open wide enough for me to squeeze through.

Room 624 seems so far away when I'm in this much of a hurry. I fumble around as I try to fit my key into the lock. When I finally click the door open, I speed walk into my room, not even remembering to close the door.

I dig through my closet until I find that shoebox. The Alex box. My heart stings and my head hurts but I open it. The last thing I ever wrote him is sitting on the top of the box. It's folded neatly into thirds and I can see the pen markings through the back of the paper. I carefully open it and I just stare at the words on the page.

It's a song that I wrote to get over Alex. Whenever I feel the need to express my emotions and feelings and let go of them, I write a song about them and it always makes me feel better. It's like my feelings are trapped into the words that I wrote and they can't hurt me again. Whenever I sing the song or play it, I don't hurt as much because the scenario seems less dramatic than when I was hurting.

This particular song is called, "Wasn't So Bad"

 _Sitting here alone thinking to myself_

 _Why did I let you go, why did I bail out_

 _Of everything we had_

 _Baby it wasn't so bad_

 _Remember those early morning conversations_

 _We whispered our dreams into oblivion_

 _In hope that one day_

 _We could share the same fate_

 _Remember every day that I looked in your eyes_

 _You asked me the story behind twisted lies_

 _And I told you that_

 _What's past is past_

 _More one time_

 _Maybe I could get it right_

 _But there's no do-over for me_

 _I've already done my time_

 _And I'm sitting here alone thinking to myself_

 _Why did I let you go, why did I bail out_

 _Of everything we had_

 _Baby it wasn't so bad_

 _Now I'm all alone and my sky is gray_

 _And you cross my mind each and every day_

 _I wish that I could go back_

 _Baby it wasn't so bad_

 _But the choices I made_

 _Reflect in my heart_

 _Will our memories fade_

 _So I could play the part_

 _I just want to restart_

 _Hello how are you, my name is Emma_

 _I like to write songs, about love's disasters_

 _How would you_

 _Like to see if we could make it through_

 _We have a history, to crash and burn_

 _But a twist in the plot, never hurt_

 _To ride with me_

 _To a future of open seas_

 _Just one more time_

 _Maybe I could get it right_

 _But there's no do over for me_

 _I've already done my time_

 _And now I'm sitting here alone thinking to myself_

 _Why did I let you go, why did I bail out_

 _Of everything we had_

 _Baby it wasn't so bad_

 _But now I'm all alone and my sky is gray_

 _And you cross my mind each and every day_

 _I wish that I could go back_

 _Baby it wasn't so bad_

 _But the choices I made_

 _Reflect in my heart_

 _Will our memories fade_

 _So I could play my part_

 _I just want to restart_

 _If we could go back_

 _To the beginning of everything_

 _I would treat you right_

 _I would hold on tight_

 _If we could go back_

 _To the moment I said hello_

 _I would never let you go_

 _I wouldn't have to be so alone_

 _But now I'm sitting here alone thinking to myself_

 _Why did I let you go why did I bail out_

 _Of everything we had_

 _Baby it wasn't so bad_

I just stare at the words and my handwriting. This was the last thing I wrote to Alex because I was just tired of being mopey and down all the time over him. Coincidently I wrote this song the day before Jarsen and I went on our first date. Now this song feels like it was for a time so long ago. It feels like I wrote this to a ghost because I woke up from my dream so long ago and now that I'm living in reality, dreams are the relevant.

I hear footsteps in the apartment and I just assume that Luna or Marissa forgot something so theey ran up the grab it. Folding up the song, I hear a knock on my door. I look up as I see Jarsen in the doorway.

"Hey," He says nonchalantly, "Is everything ok, you just took off back there."

I look back at the exposed box on my bed, full of love letters and love songs to another man. I place the folded up song in the box and I say, "Yeah, I just remembered something that I wanted to check on."

Jarsen notices the box, he walks over and sits next to me on the bed, "What's this?"

I quickly place a hand on lip and say, "it's nothing."

"That doesn't look like nothing to me," He presses, "But if you don't want to tell me it's ok, I trust you."

His words put a hole in my heart. Jarsen and I have been dating for almost four months and he has never one given me any reason to doubt him and his loyalty. He has seen me at my worst and my best but chooses to stick by for the bad times. These past four months have been absolute hell because I'm trying to be happy with my classes and my friends but this whole time my best friend is over in Italy in critical condition and she hasn't woken up. Jarsen has trusted me with so many things. Most importantly: his heart.

If he trusts me with something so fragile, I can trust him too.

I soften my grip on the box, "This box is full of love letters, songs, drawings, poems, and other things to someone I used to love. The only thing is, he didn't know that I felt this way about him. I never met him, he never met me, we never had the chance to see if love would work out." I feel my shoulders drop and my eyes start to water.

Jarsen looks at me, his green eyes intent and shining, "How did you know that you were in love with him if you never met him?"

I smile and say, "I had a dream one night, it was so vivid and real; when I woke up I realized that I was in love with this person that I had never met. I tried to have the palace security look him up and they found him. The picture on his profile looked just like my dream and he had the same siblings and he lived in the same area that he did in my dream."

"Did you go after him?" He looks down at my comforter.

I nod my head, "Jarsen that's why I came here."

His head raises to look at me, "You mean that the person you are in love with is somewhere at ASU? That the person who you have an entire box dedicated to is in the student roster?" His voice starts to get louder.

"Jarsen why are you so angry?" I ask, wondering why he was freaking out over this.

"Because, Emma, why are you even with me when you could obviously have any guy in this school? You could walk right up to the kid you love and he would totally date you." He shakes his head, "Now I know it's just a matter of time before you are going to find him and then I'll be kicked to the curb."

I shake my head furiously, "Jarsen Troy Butler, can you just let me explain? I originally came to ASU to find the guy that I was looking for; however, when I got here, I saw that he had a girlfriend. I knew that I could make him break up with her but the thing is, I wanted him to love me by his own choice. I didn't want a love that I paid for or that I forced."

His eyes still look hurt and defeated, "What are you saying?"

"I gave up on him because I wanted something real and something that was for me. Yeah sure, maybe I had a dream about a guy and I thought that I was in love with him, but now I'm not. I have this box to remind me of what isn't real, a reminder that even sometimes what we do with best intentions isn't always going to work out. The bottom of the box is filled with love letters and songs because I came here in love; the top of the box is filled with letters about letting go and moving on. The last song is about letting go and wishing to go back. When I finished the song, I finally let go because everything that I needed to say to this person is in this box. All my feelings are trapped in here and I finally let them go. Do you know when I wrote this song?" He shakes his head, "I wrote it two days before our first date, I let him go before I ever was with you. All of this hasn't been a ploy to try and use you until I found someone better. Jarsen, I'm not in love with him anymore."

He takes my hand, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."

I shake my head, "No don't, you don't need to apologize for anything, this isn't something that you need to feel bad about. I completely understand where this came from and I'm not mad at you for feeling. Don't apologize for things that aren't your fault."

He smiles and says, "Then I take it back, I'm not sorry."

I laugh, "That's better."

We just sit there and I take the box and I put it in his hands, "Here, feel free to look."

Is gaze drops to the shoe box and runs his hands over the lid before he hands it back to me, "I don't want to."

I look at him confused, "But you asked what was in it? Now you don't want to see?"

He shakes his head, "I told you Emma, I trust you. Also, this box is full of things that are in the past and things that you felt previously. What kind of depressing person would I be if I focused on the feelings that you felt before you met me? As far as I'm concerned, this box is yours to hold close to you. I don't need to worry about the past, all I need to worry about is my future with you."

I chuckle and smile, my heart swells ten times bigger than it was, "Oh Jarsen, I… am so glad that I found you." I knew what I was going to say, but I'm not totally ready to say the word yet, I know what I feel but I know that I want the moment to be perfect before I tell him. I want to be encompassed by my feelings so that when I finally tell him, I will have no problem surrendering myself to him.

I take the box and slide it into my closet, back where I was earlier. I walk over to the bed and I sit next to Jarsen. He takes my hand as we just sit in silence, him and I. I love silences with people, because they are tell-tale signs of who you are comfortable with. If the silence is awkward then you haven't totally become comfortable around someone. If the silence is natural and comforting, then you can safely say that you have become comfortable and that you trust the person enough to not damage the silence.

I turn to look at my gorgeous boyfriend, "How did you get in? I thought that the door was locked?"

He throws his head back laughing, "Emma, you literally left the door open and your keys were still in it. I just walked in"

"As did we," a voice says from the door frame.

I look up and I see two people that I haven't seen for months. I haven't heard their voices in real life since I left. I haven't seen their smiles and love since I moved.

My mom and dad are standing in the doorway. Dad has a light gray suit on with a dark blue bow tie on. His hair hasn't changed and his smile is the same. Mom has on a light green day dress with a pair of small nude heels. Her hair is lightly curled and it is half up and half down. Her bright green eyes shine and her fiery hair seems to make them look like stars.

"Mom, Dad!" I exclaim, jumping off of my bed and letting go of Jarsen's hand. I run over and I throw my arms around my dad's neck and I can feel him squeezing me back. His cologne is different but it still has that same authoritative smell. I let go and he kisses me on the top of my head. I turn to mom and I wrap her in a hug as well. She has a light flowery scented perfume on but it smells like the same one that Andrew and I would buy her for Christmas every year. Another reminder of why this November, I'm so happy to be continuing traditions.

"Hi Honey, Taylor is putting all your friend's luggage in the car and we will leave soon. They all informed us that you were in your room so we decided to come and see you." Dad says, matter of factly.

"Oh Emma, I love this room, it is so simple but so you." Mom smiles.

I hear Jarsen stand up from the bed and walk over to us, "Hello Your Majesties, I'm Jarsen Butler."

Dad walks past me, deeper into the room, "So you are Jarsen?"

He nods his head, "Yes Sir."

Dad looks up and down and says, "I'm and glad that you are not dressed poorly." He extends his hand and he and Jarsen shake. Dad looks over at me and winks, "You have a nice strong handshake. I do believe that we will get along well."

"Oh Maxon, will you cut it out, stop scaring the poor boy." Mom scolds from the door frame.

Dad laughs and says, "I'm only just messing around Jarsen. Feel free to call me Mr. Schreave."

Jarsen visibly relaxes and lets out a sigh of relief, "Thank you… Mr. Schreave."

Mom walks over and says, "Just to let you know, Jarsen, we have don't background checks on all of Emma's friends so if we know things about you, please don't be uncomfortable. I think that you will understand that it was a security measure."

He nods his head profusely, "I understand Mrs. Schreave, it's no problem. I hope mine turned out ok." He chuckles and my parents join in. It is still so surreal to me that they are actually here.

Mom and Dad turn back to me and Dad says, "Emma he is a funny guy. You should date him." He winks and then starts to walk out, "Ok, even though I would love to spend more time talking about your friend in your new bedroom, I do believe that we have a cabin to travel to. We don't want all the good snow to melt."

I groan, "Dad, really you're starting with the lame jokes now?"

He laughs as he leaves the room, "Em, you have known me your whole life. When you lived at the palace I was able to evenly distribute them into my speech, I have months to make up for."

Both of my parents walk out and I turn back to Jarsen, "I am so sorry. They are so weird."

He laughs and walks over to me and grabs my hand, "No they're actually pretty cool, I can see a lot of you in them. We shouldn't keep them waiting."

I stand up on my tip toes and I plant a kiss on his lips and then I say, "Let the ski trip begin."

* * *

 **OMG Family Reunion! I just love Emma and Jarsen so much I think that they are so cute together! There are going to be lots of fun moments with everyone on the ski trip so I'm excited for this trip!**

 **Question of the Week- What has been your favorite moment/quote/part of Face the Fire and Face the Facts?**

 **My Answer- I loved when Emma proposed to Alex in Face the Fire with the story about how they were soul mates and then they came up with the "You're my other half" and "You're my missing piece". I also love when they danced in the observatory without any music and fell asleep under the stars. I also love this chapter when Jarsen trusted Emma so much to let her past feelings be in the past because he wanted to focus on their future together.**

 **Happy Reading!**

 **xoxo, Rosie 3**


	12. Chapter 12- Alex

**Hey Guys! Sorry for the crappy uploading these past few weeks. I actually moved into my college dorm so now that i'm settled I have been writing like crazy! Haha, ok well here is chapter 12 and I'm actually super excited about this one. I think that all you Alexina shippers will be satisfied with it too... Maybe... ;) OK well without further ado, here is Chapter 12!**

* * *

November 25th- Alex

* * *

The drive to the cabin is long and drawn out but it wasn't bad. It just felt like a bunch of college kids on a road trip with the King and Queen… I mean, what could possible happen?

But honestly it was nice because everyone got to talk and get to know on another. Emma's parents are actually really chill and everything. They talked about how they fell in love and they talked about when Emma was a baby – which made Emma blush immensely – and how she would run around the palace in nothing but a diaper

"Mom! Can you please stop making me look like a freak in front of my friends!" Emma laughs as she turns bright red.

Everyone in the car is cracking up at the baby stories and Reagan says, "Emma, it's ok! We already knew that you were a freak." We all burst into another round of laughter and Emma feigns to be hurt by her comment.

Mr. Schreave says, "Emma, as you have grown up, your friends were all members of Royal Families who saw you grow up. Ricardo and Nicoletta saw you run around in your diapers, Isabella joined in on the shenanigans with you."

Emma gives him a solemn smile and says, "yeah, I bet she did. Have you…" She trails off and looks over to her dad.

He shakes his head, "Ricardo and Andrew have been told that we want to know what happens the second she does."

Emma nods her head and her mom squeezes her knee. She looks around the car and all of us try to look like we aren't paying attention but she can tell.

"OK guys," She straightens up, "So what are we planning on doing when we get to the cabin?"

We all just kind of shrug our shoulders, we never have been to the cabin and most of us have never been skiing so it's a new experience that we aren't quite used to.

Mrs. Schreave clears her throat, "Ok so I know that all of you know that since we have the Royal Security Team, and your parents, we took it into liberty to purchase coats and pants for you. As well as the local ski shop offered to make custom skis for everyone for free, so maybe that would be a nice thing to do for the afternoon?"

Marissa says, "Wow that's incredible. Thank you so much Mr. and Mrs. Schreave!"

Sam nods his head and says, "Yeah, this is extremely generous."

Mr. Schreave waves them off, "Oh just consider it an early Christmas present. My wife and I are so happy that you all were able to come and spend this time with us. We always wanted a big family but after we had Andrew, things with demolishing the caste system started to pick up and then there was just no time to raise any more children; however, the two that we did have were all we ended up needing because they always kept us on our toes!" He chuckles, "When Emma told us about you all, we felt an expansion within our family because a friend of Emma's, to us, is like having more children."

Emma looks over at him, "Dad you were just talking about me in diapers literally ten minutes ago, why did you get all sappy on us?" She laughs and we join in.

He laughs with her, "I did say that I had months of dad jokes stored but I also have months of sappy moments stored as well."

We all laugh as the car zooms down the highway.

* * *

The thing about knowing royalty is that they have so many cool things to see. I mean the Schreave family cabin in the northern sector of the country is insanely huge. The house itself is three stories tall but the floors are huge. I know that Reagan was freaking out over the architecture because as soon as we pulled up her eyes looked like they were going to pop out of her head.

The entire cabin is made out of wood logs and the roofs are a dark brown shilling. Some of the windows have different stained glass designs in them. The porch is raised and there are wooden pillars and railings that add to the rustic feel of the place.

"Holy crap," Reagan says as we get out of the car. She tugs on her jacket because it's like three degrees outside.

Mrs. Schreave chuckles, "I know sweetie, that was my exact reaction the first time Maxon took me here." She casts a glance over to her husband and he winks at her. I never in a million years thought that I would witness these things from the king and queen. I remember watching reruns of their Selection and I thought that most of it was made up and scripted. I thought that no one could possibly be that much in love… Apparently I was wrong.

We continue to walk up the stoned pathway toward the front door. I walk next to Sam and Zander, we all just lurk behind everyone and we walk silently up the driveway. I think that we all have the same thought racing around our minds: We will never be able to provide this for our future families.

I know that the caste system is gone and everyone has the freedom to choose their own jobs and shit but sometimes it's just so evident that it will take year and years to get to the point where everyone will be truly equal financially. I know that one day I will be a doctor and that I will have a decent pay check but it will take an entire lifetime to accumulate the needed money to build a house like the one I'm walking towards at the moment. I know that Emma and whomever she marries will inherit this home and they can just take a damn day off and jet away to their own private Idaho.

Sometimes life just throws this shit in your face and to be honest it sucks. It sucks to know that the home that Reagan is ogling over, we will never have.

"Zander? Sam? Alex?" I look up and see Emma looking back at the three of us and she raises her eyebrows.

I raise mine back and she says, "What's up with you guys?"

Sam just shrugs, I know that he and Emma are close but he is never one to say anything too personal in a group. He's reserved but wears his emotions on his sleeve.

Zander gestures to the house and says, "I just can't believe that this is where we will be staying. It's fucking awesome, Emma." He motions for her to hug him and she obliges. They embrace and when Zander pulls away, he smiles and says, "Thanks for inviting us."

Zander walks the rest of the pathway up to the house and Sam follows suit; for some reason, I find my feet glued to the stoned walkway.

Emma watches them and as walk and once they enter the house she turns to me and narrows her eyes at me, "What the actual hell was that?"

"What was what?"

She smacks my arm, "Alex why were they – and you!- acting so weird? They literally were staring off into space looking like robots and when I asked them if everything was okay they like snapped out of a trance."

I shrugged my shoulders, "I really don't know what to tell you Emma." But I did. I knew that I could just spill all of our thoughts right here on this frost covered stone path but I don't think that Emma needs to know that. She is so self-conscience about being a member of the Royal Family, she doesn't need our angst about finances to loom over her every time she looks at us or the house.

She groans, "You would have told me if you'd known, right?"

I nod my head, "Of course Emma, you're like my best friend."

She narrows her eyes at me one more time then decides to accept my word about the situation and she turns to the house and starts walking. I follow her, feeling guilty about lying to her but I know that it was the right thing to do. Sometimes you have to tell small lies to protect the one that you care about. Sometimes you have to take sacrifices to make sure that they keep their peace of mind. Emma is basically my best friend and I know that if she knew it would tear her apart, its better that she doesn't know… Right?

I walk into the cabin and I'm immediately met with this grand entrance with wood flooring and extravagant chandeliers. I'm taken aback by the beauty of the scenery but I'm most taken aback by how well everything flows together: this place, this time of year, this girl…

I shake my head to pull myself out of my trance, I look ahead and I see everyone standing by an archway leading into the kitchen. I make my way over there and slide my arms around Reagan's waist and rest my chin on the top of her head. Inhaling, I forget about the entrance of the house, I forget about extravagant things because I remember that my whole world is in my arms.

Or at least she should be.

* * *

"OK boys," Mrs. Schreave turns around and motions for us all to follow her up the stairs, "Your rooms are on the third floor. There are plenty of rooms for you all to have one each but if you choose to room with someone else then it is ok with Mr. Schreave and I." She gestures to the multiple doors that are spaced down the hallway.

"Thank you so much, Mrs. Schreave, this is amazing," Sam says, smiling.

She nods her head, "No problem Samuel, I hope that you all will find yourselves comfortable tonight."

We all thank her as she walks down the stairs. Once we all are left alone we start to walk into all of the rooms. Most of them look the same but some have small differences like colors or the way the rooms are organized.

Troy and I decide to share a room, the third one on the left to be exact. I have to admit it was really cool at first because he is one of my best friends and we talked about sports and shit but then when the conversation changed to girls, it got weird for me.

"Dude like Emma is amazing. When I first met her I didn't have an idea about who she was, you know? I knew about her title but when you told me about her, I knew I had to get closer and actually talk to her."

I glance down at my phone, half listening to this conversation, "Yeah man, I'm glad that it worked out for you."

He continues like he didn't hear me, "She's just so caring and sweet. She listens to all my rambling and she trusts me with pieces of her life that mean something to her. And dude, she's beautiful. No she isn't hot or sexy or some other shitty word that guys call girls; she beautiful, gorgeous, radiant. Her eyes sparkle with the deepest brown I have ever seen. I could just get lost into the sea of chocolate in her eyes if her smile wasn't so intoxicating. I mean when she smiles she just radiates happiness and joy. Her hair looks like single strands of sunshine were plucked and placed onto her hair precisely. She makes my world turn. Alex, man, she could be it for me. I know that we've been dating only a few months but I feel like when you know you just _know_..." He trails off, "I mean it must be the same with you and Reagan." He looks over at me.

I look up and I just sit there and take in what he said. It tugs at me heart because everything that he said I know the feeling of. Everything he said is how I felt about Reagan.

Felt.

Past tense.

I mean it's been an insane couple of weeks since Reagan and my anniversary but all I remember is how tense it has gotten. Reagan's parents are really controlling and all she talks about his how they just want her to be married. I don't want to be married anytime soon because I still have like seven years of med school and I want to have money to actually have a life with my future wife after school is over. Reagan's parents have been putting strain on our relationship and that's caused us to fight more. The more we fight and argue the more I feel like abandoning what we have.

But I can't.

I know I can't.

Not just for moral reasons either it's because the only other girl that I could actually see myself with is taken.

Not just by anyone either.

She's taken by my best friend.

The very best friend that thinks that he will marry her.

The very best friend that sits a few feet away from me spilling out compliments and words that I know are true because I feel them too.

I know that everything he said is true. I know that she is the most caring person in the world. I know that she is beautiful beyond belief.

I also know that she isn't mine.

She's his.

I can't have her.

She doesn't think of me that way.

She sees me as a brother and him as a prince.

I could be a prince.

She could be my princess.

But I have someone that I love, right?

I should be happy that I have a girl that loves me even though we fight and argue and are sometimes at each other's throats.

I should be happy that I have a girl that actually can see a future with me.

I should be happy.

But I'm not.

Because the only girl I want is in love with someone else and he loves her back.

Because the only girl that makes my world spin lives in an entire different world, one without me.

Because the only girl that can make my heart beat faster than anything else is currently crushing it into a million pieces because she isn't mine.

She will never be mine.

I just sit there in the bed and let myself finally accept what I've been trying to ignore. I accept that since she got here, I haven't been thinking the same. Yeah, maybe I've tried. I've tried to love Reagan with everything I have but as the days go on it's getting harder and harder to pretend.

I think I'm in love with Emma.

I was pretending with Reagan, now I have to pretend with her and Emma.

I have to make sure that Emma doesn't know how I feel because she is so happy with Troy and I don't want to be the cause of a broken heart for the both of them. I have to make Reagan remember that I love her.

These next few weeks are going to be hell.

"Yeah," I look up at Troy, answering his question, "I know exactly how you feel, man."

* * *

 **Soooooooooooo, what did you think?**

 ** _Question of the week_ \- What do you miss about Face the Fire?**

 **My Answer- I miss Emma and Christopher's relationship because they were such good friends.**


	13. Chapter 13- Emma

Ok ya'll, I always feel like I have to apologize when I post a new update because I am terrible at updating... Hahaha, but this time it was for a really personal reason. I based the character of Jarsen off this guy that I was dating and we recently broke up and I just couldn't write about Jarsen and Emma because I based Emma off of myself. It just hurt too much. Now, i'm going to try my best to write more frequently but I'm not going to make any promises because every time I make a promise, I end up breaking it so just know that I WILL finish this story and I know where it is going I just have to write it all out. Ok well I hope you enjoyed your chapter and I hope that some of you all were a bit surprised in Alex's choice in love... Without further ado, here is Chapter 13!

* * *

November 27th- Emma

* * *

I'm on the mountain over-looking all of the snow-capped view. This is my happy place. This is where I feel like I'm home. There really isn't a way to explain how you feel when you have the winter breeze on the back of your neck, snow skies attached to your feet, and a view of mountains and lodges for as far as the eye can see.

Angeles is great and everything but nothing beats this view. I have always loved the mountains and just the cold in general. I'm the type of person who despises the beach and everything that comes with it. Coconut, pineapple, sand, seashells, anything that comes with the beach I bet that I'll hate it. Living in Angeles means that literally the only thing to do is go to the beach, and that's when the weather is actually bearable.

But when I'm here, I can't describe the feeling that I get. I love the bitterness of the air and the feeling when you can't feel your nose. I love shoveling snow early in the morning and I love hiking through the snowy trails up in the mountains. I love the fires and the sweet treats. I love morning hot cocoa and evening cups of apple cider. I love it here and I'm actually so upset that I have to go back to Angeles.

"Emma, I don't think that I can do this…" Marissa calls from behind me. Today is the third day that we've been skiing and they're getting the hang of it slowly but surely. Yesterday we spent the day on all the green hills and bunny slopes. Now I think that everyone has graduated to the blue but it still Is a bit of a transition.

I look up at where she, Reagan, and Luna are standing, "Guys, I promise you that you'll be fine. Just remember your pizza and french fries and then you'll be fine."

I glide down the slopes. My skies slicing through the freshly groomed powder. I swivel my hips so that I start making longer strides before I turn, just to savor the run more. When I'm about a fourth of the way down I hockey stop off to the side of the run and I look up at the girls and I see that they are making their way down the slope turning only when they have to. I stand there a little bit longer, holding all of my weight on my left foot and I just watch. I remember skiing when I was younger and it always just came naturally to me. I obviously started out the same way the girls are but I progressed faster than most people. It's almost like I was born to have a pair of skies attached to my feet.

They finally catch up to me and I let them go a bit further down before I finish out the run. I blew past all of them and I snagged a place in line for the chair lift. They all file in and we head up the mountain.

"How did you learn to ski so well, Emma?" Reagan asks.

"Yeah," Luna adds, "It's so unfair."

I just start laughing, "I learned the same way you did, but I did start skiing when I was three so I've had a bit more time to practice."

Almost immediately we came up over the summit of one of the smaller mountains and immediately we stopped talking because we saw the valley way and there were so many trees and other beautiful things. This view always takes my breath away.

We sat in silence for the rest of the chair lift because how can you speak through something like that?

* * *

Jarsen and I are walking through the mountains, the crisp air is blowing and the trees are barren but covered in white. We decided to go on this nature hike because in the house full of our friends we needed to just get away and be us. Somewhere a mile or two back, his hand found my hand and we decided to just ask any random question that came into our heads.

"What is one thing that you would go back and undo from your past?" He asks, looking ahead at the next hill we are about to start to trek up.

I think about that because I don't know if I would change anything. My first instinct was to say that I would change the dream about Alex but then if I did it wouldn't have brought me here. I would say that I wish that I hadn't been the princess of Illea but I wouldn't be where I am today. There are so many mistakes that I made and things that I've done that I wish that I could change but then if they changed, I wouldn't be here.

"I don't think that I would change anything." I say, nodding my head.

"No way, you have to want to change something." He says in a half laugh.

I look over and meet his gorgeous green eyes, "I wouldn't change anything because changing things means that I wouldn't end up here, walking up this enormous hill with you, holding your hand, and feeling like I'm safe and that I belong. If I changed anything then I wouldn't be who I am, I wouldn't have made the mistakes that got me here and I wouldn't have chosen the paths that led to this very moment in my life." I smile at him, his eyes a little bit red because of the cold, "Why would I want to change anything when everything that I could ever dream about is right in front of me?"

I never noticed that we slowed down and stopped on our walk; however, I noticed when Jarsen let go of my hand. I noticed when his gloves cupped my cold cheeks and I also noticed when his lips touched mine. Usually I feel a bunch of fireworks when I kiss him but this time is different. This time I feel a warmth grow inside me, starting from the pit of my stomach and moving to create this universal heat that melts my heart. His lips part and we move things further but somehow I feel safe. His hands are still on my cheeks but he moves them down to wrap around my waist. I reach up on my tip toes and we break away from the kiss and just press our foreheads together. We are breathing heavily but we are breathing at the same rhythm. I know that our hearts are doing the same.

I close my eyes, it's my turn to ask a question but I don't know what I am going to say except this, "What are you thinking right now?"

I can hear his smile when he says, "I don't think that I could tell you."

I kiss his lips and lightly tug on his bottom lip. I quickly move my lips down to his neck, trailing smaller kisses on his neck and jaw line. I bare my teeth and I smile to myself when I hear his breath hitch. Then I work my way up to the back of his ear, when I hear him let out the slightest moan I say, "Are you going to tell me?"

He laughs and says, "Not when you're making it hard for me to talk."

I laugh and I pull away to look him in the eyes, "Fine, I guess we can do it your way."

He moves his head slowly and presses a kiss to my forehead, "Slow." He presses a kiss on the tip of my nose, "And Steady." He kisses my cheek, "Wins the race, babe." He lightly ghosts his lips over mine and just when I think I can't take it anymore, they come crashing down on me and I feel a mixture of the fireworks and warmth and I can't help but kiss him back.

We kiss and kiss and kiss, not that I'm complaining, when your boyfriend is 6'5" and drop dead gorgeous it's hard to resist the temptation. When we finally decide that we should continue on our walk we link hands again. This time we stop asking questions and start telling secrets.

"When I was younger, all I wanted to be when I grew up was a mermaid." I say, and he starts laughing.

"Why? Out of everything, you wanted to be a mermaid?" He says in between laughing.

I smile and join him, "Well I mean I already knew that I was a princess and I knew that I was going to be queen, so I guess that I had all those cliché things that most five-year-old's wanted to be. Also like what is more peaceful than living in the ocean, I hate the beach but If I was in the deep ocean with all my mer-friends and fish pals, I think that it would be pretty peaceful."

He laughs, "You do make a valid point."

"Ok your turn." I say confidently.

He stares off into space, "I used to own a life size giraffe and I called it George."

I look over at him, "Life size? How would that work?"

He laughs and says, "Ok maybe it wasn't life size but it was a good six feet tall."

"Why in the world did you have that?"

He laughs, "Well, I used to be afraid of the dark, like it was a pretty bad fear; but, my mom would always read me stories about how giraffes would hum to each other at night so that they knew that they were all still together. She bought me George when I was four and told me that if I ever got scared at night, I could hum to George and he would protect me. I did that up until I was sixteen, now I'm not afraid of the dark because I learned that no matter what, I am never alone."

I smile at him, even though his eyes are fixed on the road ahead of us, "I think that's so touching. Like I want to meet your mom so badly now."

He chuckles, "Oh she wants to meet you too, I've told her a lot about you."

"All bad things, right?" I joke.

He smiles, "Of course. That's where most of my material comes from."

I laugh and we round a curve and then it is just us standing on this summit. There, as far as the eye can see, the world is just covered in this blanket of white. Log cabins speckle the ground like freckles and the tress don't look like blemishes but they add a beautiful texture to the already gorgeous scenery.

I turn around and see Jarsen just staring at me, "What?" I ask, smiling at him.

He walks up to me and says in a low voice, "I'm just enjoying the view."

I throw my head back and laugh, "Oh stop it you."

He wraps his arms around me and we just hold onto each other. I just think how lucky I am that he threw that note onto my desk that day in Western Civ.

He kisses the top of my head and says, "Ok now I can tell you what I am thinking."

I look up at him and say, "Ok…"

He says, "I was thinking, what did I do to deserve you. I must have done a really good deed or donated to really good charity because I don't deserve you, Emma. You are the most inspiring person that I have met. The amount of fire in your eyes makes you invincible and the amount of compassion behind the fire makes you relatable. There is a reason why so many people want you on the throne and that's because you make people feel like they are special no matter what they have done or made mistakes. You make people feel strong and cared about." His eyes deepen when he says, "I know that I must have done something good because I love you, Emma. I am madly in love with you."

At this point I'm crying, "I love you too. I love you so much."

We kiss and this time there isn't any fire or fireworks because those were only there to tell me that I loved him. They were only there to convince me that I loved him. Now that they aren't there, I feel safer.

I am loved.

I am in love.

He is my love.

What a wonderful feeling it is.

* * *

 **THEY FINALLY SAID THE "L" WORD OMG OMG OMG.**

 **Ok so PLEASE give me your feedback! I want to hear from all of you guys!**

 **Happy Reading,**

 **xoxo Rosie 3**

 **Question: What is a not-so-secret secret of yours .**

 **Answer: Mine is actually the same as Emma's, I always wanted to be a mermaid when I grew up. I also eat peanut butter straight out of the jar. :D**


End file.
